Sad News for South Walton Turtle Nest No. 1

Walton Outdoors · 05-23-2009, 11:13 AM

Photo courtesy South Walton Turtle Watch Group

Loggerhead turtle nest washed over by high surf

The first turtle nest of the season in Seacrest has been compromised due to high surf conditions May 23.

According to Sharon Maxwell from South Walton Turtle Watch, a turtle nest stops development if it is washed over more than three times. With high surf conditions, the Gulf waters have been up to the sand dunes.

Time will tell, and the group will monitor and dig when it reaches full development at 80 days.

For more information about our local turtle watch group, go to: www.seaturtlewatch.com

sunspotbaby · 05-23-2009, 11:36 AM

Aww...

analogman · 05-23-2009, 02:38 PM

I guess it should have been moved further up the dunes.

mom of zoro · 07-26-2009, 11:23 PM

Actually, this nest hatched out a few cute little guys July 24 and 25. Great news and now we know more by letting nature do what it does best!

Imatrucountrygirl · 07-27-2009, 02:44 AM

KUDOS to the little guys.... I was involved in Turtle Watch Bay County, some years back.. and would love to participate in Walton, just live too FAR north.... happy happy dance for the turtles....

Lynnie · 07-27-2009, 06:53 AM

This is fabulous news!!!! Wahoo -

Relay_Jen · 07-30-2009, 01:55 PM

Great news! So glad the high surf didn't harm them.

wrobert · 07-30-2009, 06:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Walton Outdoors

Photo courtesy South Walton Turtle Watch Group

Loggerhead turtle nest washed over by high surf

The first turtle nest of the season in Seacrest has been compromised due to high surf conditions May 23.

According to Sharon Maxwell from South Walton Turtle Watch, a turtle nest stops development if it is washed over more than three times. With high surf conditions, the Gulf waters have been up to the sand dunes.

Time will tell, and the group will monitor and dig when it reaches full development at 80 days.

For more information about our local turtle watch group, go to: www.seaturtlewatch.com

I thought turtle watch could relocate those nests to prevent that sort of thing from happening.

ShallowsNole · 07-30-2009, 08:21 PM

I don't know if they can or not, but I don't imagine it is in the best interests of the babies. And if water has been coming to the foot of the dunes, doesn't sound there would have been a safe place anyway.

Come to think of it, when the Inlet Beach driving access was closed, the story was that it was closed due to a turtle nest. If they could relocate them, that would have been a good time to do so. Or perhaps there was not a nest at all, and that's just what everyone was told.

wrobert · 07-30-2009, 08:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ShallowsNole

I don't know if they can or not, but I don't imagine it is in the best interests of the babies. And if water has been coming to the foot of the dunes, doesn't sound there would have been a safe place anyway.

Come to think of it, when the Inlet Beach driving access was closed, the story was that it was closed due to a turtle nest. If they could relocate them, that would have been a good time to do so. Or perhaps there was not a nest at all, and that's just what everyone was told.

Doesn't make sense though. I understood from Beachsio that it was a sole source contract, for 80K a year, cause Sharon was the only one qualified to move turtle nests and that was some sort of a federal requirement. Now scooter or goodwitch one posted that all you had to do to get the permit was take high school marine biology, so it sort of shot down the sole source argument, but still does not explain why they were not moved.

What I find strange is local democrats have nothing to say about us spending 80K a year and the turtles still appear to be dying. I had always looked to them in the past to protect us from ourselves. I guess they have given up also.

ShallowsNole · 07-30-2009, 09:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wrobert

Doesn't make sense though. I understood from Beachsio that it was a sole source contract, for 80K a year, cause Sharon was the only one qualified to move turtle nests and that was some sort of a federal requirement. Now scooter or goodwitch one posted that all you had to do to get the permit was take high school marine biology, so it sort of shot down the sole source argument, but still does not explain why they were not moved.

What I find strange is local democrats have nothing to say about us spending 80K a year and the turtles still appear to be dying. I had always looked to them in the past to protect us from ourselves. I guess they have given up also.

Spending a million a year won't keep them from dying. I don't follow the turtles as closely as I should, but I do believe their survival rate is far greater than it was before the program was implemented.

And this is not the political forum, anyway. I'm glad the nest still had hatchlings.

BeachSiO2 · 07-31-2009, 07:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wrobert

Doesn't make sense though. I understood from Beachsio that it was a sole source contract, for 80K a year, cause Sharon was the only one qualified to move turtle nests and that was some sort of a federal requirement. Now scooter or goodwitch one posted that all you had to do to get the permit was take high school marine biology, so it sort of shot down the sole source argument, but still does not explain why they were not moved.

What I find strange is local democrats have nothing to say about us spending 80K a year and the turtles still appear to be dying. I had always looked to them in the past to protect us from ourselves. I guess they have given up also.

Actually, after the sole source contract was questioned during budget discussions, I once again contacted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission and nothing has changed in regards to Walton County. The South Walton Turtle Watch Group is the turtle permit holder for Walton County and the ONLY group legally able to perform "turtle duties" in Walton County so they are still the sole provider of this service.

Smiling JOe · 07-31-2009, 07:54 AM

wrobert, you just don't seem to understand nature.

Imatrucountrygirl · 07-31-2009, 08:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wrobert

Doesn't make sense though. I understood from Beachsio that it was a sole source contract, for 80K a year, cause Sharon was the only one qualified to move turtle nests and that was some sort of a federal requirement. Now scooter or goodwitch one posted that all you had to do to get the permit was take high school marine biology, so it sort of shot down the sole source argument, but still does not explain why they were not moved.

What I find strange is local democrats have nothing to say about us spending 80K a year and the turtles still appear to be dying. I had always looked to them in the past to protect us from ourselves. I guess they have given up also.

I can only respond from my experience in Bay County Turtle Watch.. but you do not have to have any kind of degree, but you do have to listed on the federal permits through the state, to be able to even touch one.. I was at one time, one of these people.. although, you don't have to have any biology... you do have to attend "lectures, classes or seminars" whichever that you would like to call them, put on by the state, before you are listed on the permit. I have previously assisted with dolphins and turtles..have even assisted a necropsy at NOAA in Panama City Beach.. a sad experience, but that is how they learn (a turtle autopsy ). Now when I was doing this in Bay County.. we were instructed to move nests, if we felt they were to be flooded.. but about the time that I moved to Nowal, they were starting to change their thinking, into letting nature take care of the little guys.. me? I believe in moving the nests myself, as the numbers of survivors are just not that positive... At that time, we were also caging the nests, in order to make sure the turtles, went the right way, to the gulf instead of the parking lots and under the board walks..but they were starting to eliminate that procedure too, when I left..But yes, I have been one of those people at 3 am following their little tracks all over motels, under boardwalks, under the beach chairs, parking lots and even digging up the ghost crabs holes, those lil suckers will grab a baby turtle in a second and take them in their hole...I even had the rare opportunity to see a albino, although I had to release him at Sunnyside Beach, (the dark beach for PCB), because of the lighting, we had to transport them there to release them...and i KNOW that his chances of survival were next to none... It is sad to send them on their way..knowing the majority of them will be fish bait...

.. But I do think that the State is trying to do what they can to help these little guys.. Like I said.. if I could participate in the program today, I would be there every morning....but I am limited due to travel time and money... Just a lil bit of information for you guys.. but things have changed, so some of this information might be outdated.....

ASH · 07-31-2009, 02:37 PM

I'll attempt to get onto this thread as often as I can and welcome any questions you have. If I don't have the answer or I just feel you are harrassing either me or the turtle group, understand that is why your particular question goes unanswered.

I am a member of the South Walton Turtle Watch group and am also listed on the federal permit. As a matter of fact, I moved a nest just this morning near the Blue Mountain Beach access.

The turtle this morning dug a nest about 12' South of what permit holders deem to be the high tide line. Yes, this is subjective and up to the permit holder(s) on the scene. We knew it was a good decision when we dug for the eggs as it turns out they were in sandy soup and had been submerged since planted. We moved the nest as far North as we could, stopped by sea walls. I'll state right here that I will not discuss, positive or negative, anything about sea walls. That is not what this thread is about, so if you feel ignored, you were warned.

You do not need to be a biologist to get on the permit. You wouldn't learn what you needed in a classroom anyway. The extent of what permit holders do is to interact with hatching turtles and any physical contact with nests. That's it. Not rocket science by any stretch. There is a limited number of people allowed on the permit and it's currently full. People qualify to get on permit purely by experience working with other people already permitted. You learn how a turtle builds a nest and how to duplicate it in the event you must move a nest. Width, depth, type of sand and a couple other tricks and the little ones hopefully don't know the difference.

We currently have one nest with a screen over it because a fox dug up the nest and ate about 15 of the eggs.

Nest #1 was likely left where it was because at that time of the year, there hadn't been as many storms and therefore the weedline or discolored line generally used to indicate a seasonal high tide line was South of the nest. The feds are fussy about being too subjective and moving a nest because we think there might be a storm a few weeks from now that might move that high tide line further inland. The intent is to leave mother nature alone until we have certain probability of endangerment.

Last year we had nests right up against the toe of the dune, you can't go any further, only to have 8 feet of the toe of the dune erased due to the small storms we had in the area. We did what we could and mother nature always gets the last call. It sucks, but it is what it is.

OK, enough from me. I think I covered everything. Please ask questions and I will do my best to get you answers.

SWGB · 08-01-2009, 01:38 AM

ASH, I'm not trying to criticize or harass. However I am curious as to why they move the nests? We all agree that the turtles come here to lay their eggs and recognize that they do so out of instinct. However once the turtle lays the eggs in a spot we don't feel to be "conducive" to proper egg incubation they are moved. This just doesn't make sense to me. Is there a scientific reason to move the eggs that momma put in a specific place?

ASH · 08-01-2009, 11:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SWGB

ASH, I'm not trying to criticize or harass. However I am curious as to why they move the nests? We all agree that the turtles come here to lay their eggs and recognize that they do so out of instinct. However once the turtle lays the eggs in a spot we don't feel to be "conducive" to proper egg incubation they are moved. This just doesn't make sense to me. Is there a scientific reason to move the eggs that momma put in a specific place?

This is currently being studied. Example would be for several years following Opal, turtles were coming further up the beach to make nests. This is what I am told, I wasn't here back then. Was there something about all that sand that was bulldozed up the beach that made the turtles come in further, perhaps looking for the right sand, which it doesn't appear they found. I spoke with Sharon Maxwell and those particular years it was very common for a nest of 100+ eggs to only have 2 or 3 hatch out. The rest remained undeveloped. Why, I don't know.

My scientific response to why nests are moved is to attempt to maximize the chances of the most eggs hatching and possibly giving a boost to several endangered species. The next step if this doesn't work is that the feds will step in and gather up every nest they find and artificially incubate every one and then return them to the ocean. This is all in an effort to try to keep these species from going extinct. It is known that when a nest is too close to the waters edge and the nest gets washed over due to wave action, the eggs drown, literally.

ASH · 08-01-2009, 11:58 AM

Let me add that most nests are not moved. Of 33 nests currently in Walton County, I believe only 6 have been moved and all of them would have been nests placed between this season's known high tide line and the water. As we get depper into storm season, the chances that this tide line will move inland is nearly 100%.

Does this help?

SWGB · 08-01-2009, 12:08 PM

Yes, thank you.