Day 51 - Excavation & Final volunteer standing
Monday morning Kate, Kester, Marina, Tom, Steph and I headed to Levera at 5:45am for excavation. We dug nests between markers L and M. I found 3. As we were excavating there were a few bouts of rain so we were suitably soaked through as well. On the morning survey Kester found 2 live hatchlings and whilst exacting one of my nests Tom found one dead and one live hatchlings among the egg shells! We popped the loved ones in a bucket for release in the evening. We then came back to the house and I read for a while. I had left over pizza for breakfast 😊. marina’s Taxi arrived at 13:00 and Tom went with her to spend the afternoon at Grand Anse. We said our goodbyes and then Kate, Steph and I chatted for most of the afternoon before dinner. Kate cooked a glass bean noodle stir fry for dinner with baked aubergine; very yum.
While Kate washed up Steph and I went to Bathway to release the hatchlings. A few people ask why we don’t just put the hatchlings in the sea. The reason we put them on the beach and make them walk to the sea themselves is partly to make sure they have stretched, woken up and are ready to swim, it’s also for them to imprint. Turtles will nest up to 1 mile mile away from the beach they emerged on and so they need to walk on the sand to imprint on the ears geomagnetic to ensure they can find their way back when they are ready to nest. Unfortunately one of the hatchlings wasn’t alive in the bucket but we cleared a channel in the sargassum (it’s back again) and released them to walk to the sea. Eventually the sea took them but a huge wave washed them back again so it took a little while for them to make it out into the sea properly.
While Kate washed up Steph and I went to Bathway to release the hatchlings. A few people ask why we don’t just put the hatchlings in the sea. The reason we put them on the beach and make them walk to the sea themselves is partly to make sure they have stretched, woken up and are ready to swim, it’s also for them to imprint. Turtles will nest up to 1 mile mile away from the beach they emerged on and so they need to walk on the sand to imprint on the ears geomagnetic to ensure they can find their way back when they are ready to nest. Unfortunately one of the hatchlings wasn’t alive in the bucket but we cleared a channel in the sargassum (it’s back again) and released them to walk to the sea. Eventually the sea took them but a huge wave washed them back again so it took a little while for them to make it out into the sea properly.
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