Network for Endangered Sea Turtles 24 HR. HOTLINE 252-441-8622

Duck, Duck, Duck… Carova!

Loggerhead on beach in Carova.

Carova finally broke Duck’s streak for nesting activity.  Around 11:30 PM the NEST hotline got a call from some beach goers in Carova.  They had spotted a large loggerhead sitting on the beach.  Shortly after they noticed her, she turned back and headed toward the ocean and they headed back to the house to call NEST.

Windblown nest site

Betty ran out and got the site staked off enough to keep it protected until morning when nesting responders could arrive and work in daylight.  When the team arrived in the morning, they knew it was going to be a long day.  The high winds and soft sand had nearly erased every sign that the turtle had been there. There appeared to be a large body pit and the remnants

of a pile of sand sitting on top the once incoming crawl marks.  And so with nothing else to do they began to dig.  And dig. And dig.  Families were recruited as they came out for the morning but still… no eggs found.  It seems this year we have a new category of nests… “Possible Nest”.

Beginning to dig

...and dig...

and dig some more.