Now that nearly all our nests have hatched, we can call the leatherback season at Sandy Point completed! On the last night of the season, we had one final turtle – Sarah (flipper tag = AAV640), pictured above with members of the team. Taking a long-exposure shot under nearly full moonlight was the only way … More 2018 Season wrap-up…
We were so lucky this season to have all 38 of our leatherback turtles adopted and named by supporters of the project! One of those turtles, Lucy McGillicuddy, was adopted by Penny Mabie for her partner, Barb Keogh. We were really sorry to learn that Barb recently passed away. As a lovely tribute to Barb … More In memory of Barb Keogh…turtle whisperer and project supporter..
The nesting season is winding down – just a couple of turtles left in the area – we are no longer on night patrols, so we see only their tracks on our morning surveys. But we are out full force to protect nests emerging, to dig up and inventory nests that have hatched and to … More 8 July update – hatchlings everywhere!
We are at the point in the season where the miles walked have made our legs strong and our patience immense! We did have a surge in nesting a couple of weeks ago, but now nesting has slowed and we are transitioning into more hatchling protection work. Nesting will continue to taper off now through … More 4 June update – nesting peak and hatchling emergences!
We started the night last night with hatchlings on the beach! They had just emerged and most of them had made it to the water already, apart from a few stragglers. Our team (Emma and Kenny) rounded them up and made sure they got safely down the beach and into the water. This last week … More 21 May update – Nesters and hatchlings 🙂
It’s been an epic week here in St. Croix with so many turtles and so many things to update you on! Let’s see, the main lesson is that when you are out looking for turtles, they will show up where you least expect them 🙂 For example the other night, when we were out with … More 15 May update; always surprising!
A really fun week here at Sandy Point with our leatherbacks and our team! We’ve seen two new turtles, as well as familiar faces from earlier in the season. This week, our local volunteers helped out tremendously with patrols, and kept us entertained with stories and questions! Thanks to Ellie and Kenny Schatz, Tracy Cole, … More 7 May update – new turtles!
Catching our breath has been hard this past 10 days! We said farewell to the Duke University Marine Lab Sea Turtle Class on Sunday, after 10 fun-filled and exhausting days doing turtle patrols, beach cleanups, night surveys, strenuous hikes, lectures, and discussions! The eight students added a lot to our team, bringing stories, good humor … More 29 April update – it’s hopping!
Turtle-filled night, last night! Our team was busy nearly from the moment they reached the beach, first seeing Joasia for her second nest of the year, and then finding YYX054 (needs a name!) a very short while later. Both turtles laid good nests, didn’t need any new tags, and were on their way by 11 … More 19 April update – Three turtle night!
The time is just flying by already! We have identified 11 individual turtles at Sandy Point since 31 March and we now have 30 nests on the island (since 6 March). Each night we head out at dusk to see who else we can find! The weather has been a bit warmer and the winds … More 12 April update…11 turtles identified!
