Hobcaw nest! Ocean Green false crawl

Hobcaw: Duane stepped out WW#12 and immediately spotted a crawl that went up to the slant of the pushed up dune with tracks the same length. There was dark, piled up sand in a tight area. If a nest, it was an extremely tidy turtle. He walked on toward the inlet and found a second crawl north #7mm with a big crawl differential and a classic body pit. With no other activity, Duane returned and probed the body pit. He located the egg chamber of HOB28 on the 10th try…yay Duane! The nest was above the spring tide on a low incline. 

Pat had no Middle activity so Betsy asked her to check out the crawl in Ocean Green. After analysis and multiple probes she had not found any eggs. Betsy went for backup and also found nothing soft enough to dig. They declared it a false crawl. This could be the first attempt by the turtle that nested north #7mm. She made the same pattern and came in earlier.

DNA: The results are trickling in on our egg collections. Check out the travels of our girls!

DEB 36 HOB 28 SCUTE 163 SC 4308

Save the date: S.C.U.T.E. Loop 5K Run/Walk – October 23!!

7-15-21 The sharp incline and sand quality may have been the reason this turtle decided not to nest in Ocean Green….false crawl.
7-15-21 This is what turtle volunteers like to see, a big difference in crawl lengths. This indicates the turtle spent some time on the beach and likely nested!
7-15-21 Duane wasted no time probing the body pit area and located the egg chamber on his 10th probe…HOB28!
7-15-21 Volunteers collect one egg from each nest which reveals the DNA of the female turtle. We know from the results that this turtle nests every 2 years and is very loyal to the our area.
7-15-21 On the other hand, this DNA of this turtle shows she prefers the NC beaches but slipped down to DeBordieu to lay her first nest of 2021. She nests, on average, every 3 years.