Sea Turtles Nesting on Hilton Head Island 2021-2022
Be the first to comment on this post Categories: Hilton Head MainThese incredibles Sea Turtles are returning to the Island after leaving the Island as hatchlings almost 25 years ago. If you would like to adopt a nest, the cost is $25.00 and you will be able to follow your nest with updates from from Terri Johnson(see below). Hilton Head Properties this year will adopt a nest for every new buyer that works with us this year! Click here to adopt your own nest. If you would like to start shopping for your very own nest on the Island please click Hilton Head Properties!
“Take care of our world.”
~ Miss Andrea Siebold
August 25, 2021
Dear Sea Turtle Nest Adopters,
On May 10th (Mothers Day! How appropriate!!!), the first sea turtle nest of our season was found on Hilton Head Island!! In the middle of the night, a mother sea turtle dragged herself out of the ocean, on to the sand and crawled to a beautiful, scenic spot waaaay above the high tide line. We did not see the mother turtle (long gone by daylight) but we did see her unmistakable tracks in the sand leading into the dunes:
Once she got there, she busily dug a deep hole with her back flippers (not too easy to do!) and laid her eggs (usually about 120 of them) into the hole. After that, she covered up all of the eggs, filled in the hole, so that her eggs would be safe from harm for the next 60 or so days until they are ready to hatch. Then, exhausted, she dragged her tired body back into the ocean – never to visit her nest or see her babies again! Wow! What a lot of work for that poor mother! If you look carefully, you can see her tracks to and from her nest: Also notice the nice empty beach, perfect for peaceful sea turtle nesting!
The Sea Turtle Patrol has now marked the nest with three poles and an orange label to remind us all that this is the nest of an endangered species – they are not to be touched or disturbed.
We got off to a great start, despite it being such a cool, cool spring. 273 nests as the nesting season winds down!!
Thanks so much for your interest – we’ll keep you posted!
Terri
Terri Johnson
Sea Turtle Nest Adoption Coordinator
Coastal Discovery Museum
803-389-8458
Be sure to check out our Facebook and Instagram pages:
“Take care of our world.”
~ Miss Andrea Siebold
July 20, 2021
Dear Nest Adopters,
In July and August, the Hilton Head Island beach is a busy place: During the day, tourists and locals fill the sand and water with fun, noise and laughter. But in the night, although most of the mother sea turtles have finished coming ashore to nest, a lot of hatchlings are leaving the nest racing to the ocean! Everyone on the island is working hard to educate our beach goers with simple instructions: leave the beach at the end of the day as you found it! Fill in the holes, flatten the sand castles and pick up the trash. This is sea turtle territory!!🐢🐢🐢
Our “Man On The Beach” (MOTB) has been up early in the morning checking on the nests near our house! It’s Hatching Season!! Our first nest laid (May 9th) was our first nest hatched a week ago (around 65 days incubation), so we are off to the “races”!!!!
Hatching is the always a big question. No one really knows when a nest will hatch (like waiting for a pot to boil or lightening to strike!!) – it can be any time between 45 and 65 days after it was laid. But we do know that hatchlings prefer to come out in the night – it is cooler, quieter and safer for them.
Here is how it happens: more than 100 eggs have been developing under the sand for almost two months. Gradually, the hatchlings start to break out of their shells – still under the sand. You can tell that this is happening when you see a depression in the sand that looks like a bowling ball was dropped on it – like this:
The hatchlings don’t just come out one at a time…..they wait until a whole bunch of them are ready to make a run for it – and lots exit the nest at the same time. This is called a “boil”. In the Coastal Discovery Museum, there is a model of what a nest looks like under the ground during the hatching.
Then they make a run for the nearest light – which is supposed to be the ocean. (If people have on lights in their beach front houses, the hatchlings will go that way and never make it to the ocean….very sad!)
If everything goes right, our Man On The Beach will see tracks coming out of the nest like these, all going the same direction straight for the ocean!
After a couple days allowing the nest to “boil out” the Sea Turtle Patrol will “inventory the nest”, counting hatched egg shells and checking to see if any babies where left behind. Last year MOTB got to see the Turtle Patrol scoop some of the babies that didn’t quite make it out of an inventoried nest and release them closer to the lapping waves. You can see a good bit of the video he took at the attached link! Remember, only certified members of the Sea Turtle Patrol can handle these babies!
If you happen to see a nest hatching, you are very lucky – but PLEASE keep a distance away, do not take any pictures, and use only a red turtle safe flashlight – pointed AWAY from the hatchling. We want to protect every one of those babies!
Over 13,000 eggs are incubating in the sands of HHI beaches…..more later, we are getting closer to those results!!!
Terri
Terri Johnson
Sea Turtle Nest Adoption Coordinator
Coastal Discovery Museum
803-389-8458
April 26, 2021
Dear Hilton Head Island Sea Turtle Friends,
Dear Sea Turtle Nest Adopters,
Let me introduce you to our “Man On The Beach”, my husband, Steve. He is out on the beach at sunrise most every morning and has some wonderful interaction with both the Sea Turtle Patrol (those folks permitted by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources to both monitor and protect our precious mommas and nests) and the opportunity to photograph his adventures for us to enjoy!
May 1st is the “official” opening of Sea Turtle Nesting Season (right around the corner!!). It won’t be long now until you find out when “your” momma came on shore to nest! I will email you right away when that happens!!
Last year, our Man on the Beach had the great fortune of starting his morning sunrise journey with a momma ashore nesting right on the dunes by our home! He had a chance to film it and you can see those videos here:
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvaSRmJfDq8
You have as much a chance of seeing a momma come ashore to nest (they are notoriously shy) as being struck by lightning!
Remember, these animals are an endangered species and federal law prohibits anyone, but the folks licensed by South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, to interfere or handle them in any way. So, if you are lucky enough to be on the beach during the late evening or early morning hours and see such an amazing thing, be sure to stay behind her and out of sight! Our MOTB had a very long zoom lens and was way out of her eye range when this video was shot.
More in the coming weeks! In the meantime enjoy this sunset view over the water taken from the dock of Hudson’s Seafood House on the Docks……..
Best,
Terri
Terri Johnson
Sea Turtle Nest Adoption Coordinator
Coastal Discovery Museum
803-389-8458
November 6, 2020
The beach is empty – the tourists and the sea turtles have departed. The 2020 hatching season has ended. We had a great season!
291 Nests
33,379 eggs
25,390 hatched eggs
55.5 days average incubation duration
114.8 eggs average per nest
95.8% nest success
Thank you for sharing the sea turtle journey with us in 2020 – your interest and enthusiasm have been inspiring! You are wonderful ambassadors to help save the sea turtles and our environment.
Our adopters came from almost every state in the US plus some providences in Canada. You are all awesome! This year’s adopters include:
- Children and adults receiving birthday gift nests.
- Couples anniversary gifts and new brides and grooms around the country becoming adoptive sea turtle parents.
- Lost loved ones near and far honored with dedicated memorial nests.
- Friends who travel around the world – and shared their experiences with us.
- Book Groups
- Mother and fathers who adopt for family members around the country so they can compare their nest success stats at the end of the season.
- Grandparents who share in the joy of sea turtles with their grandchildren and continue the tradition of environmental stewardship and appreciation.
- Realtors who adopt for their clients to share the lovely sentiment:
“Like the Sea Turtles that return to the island, it is our hope that will return to the Island again.”
- Plus countless others.
To our local sea turtle lovers, we say thanks – the amazing Sea Turtle Patrol who does the “heavy lifting” every morning starting at 5:00 am, the Turtle Trackers who help clean up the beach in the evenings, the beach walkers who share their joy and pictures of mothers or hatchling sightings.
Special thank you to our Man On The Beach (my husband, Steve). He will be our eyes and ears for the 2021 season, therefore make sure you adopt for 2021 so you can follow along on his early morning adventures!
Thank you to the Coastal Discovery Museum staff who prepares and mails all of the certificates and shirts and who teach and inspire endless classes of school children, visitors, and locals.
A special thanks to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources who graciously provides us with the exciting details of each nest hatch.
A final thank you to our lovely Miss Andrea Siebold, who has shouldered the responsibility of keeping all adopters up to date and informed in her educational, entertaining way for the past 12 years. I am humbled and blessed to follow in her footsteps and look forward to new educational, entertaining journeys with our amazing returning adopters and those new to the HHI sea turtle nest adopting experience.
The 2021 nest adoption form is on the museum website www.coastaldiscovery.org, plus I’ve included the form with this email. Adoptions are already underway for next year so don’t delay to make sure you get the whole experience from the first momma sighting (around the end of April) to the last nest hatch (usually beginning of October)!
Because of our current pandemic situation, the Holiday Market at the Museum has been canceled, therefore I will be at the Farmers Market at the Museum on Tuesday, November 24 from 9 am to – 1 pm. Come over and say Hi!
With thanks until next season –
Terri
Terri Johnson
Sea Turtle Nest Adoption Coordinator
Coastal Discovery Museum
803-389-8458
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