Terrapin Nesting Project50% Complete

Friday, July 8, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

Over the past few weeks, I've relocated 221 terrapin eggs, laid in unsuitable areas, to thehatchery setup on the dunes and protected by baskets and "predator eyes". I know of atleast 8 other "safe nests", containing between 10 to 20 eggs each. The nesting season willcontinue until the end of this month, July.

This is already a major improvement over the previous years when not a single nest remainedundisturbed. The real proof will be the first week of August through the end of September,when the hatchlings emerge. This is show time.

By next year, Kathy, that's me, will have an Intern, my own tagging equipment, scales andhopefully a small grant. John Wnek, the scientist I convinced to take me on board and I willbe co-publishing a paper based on our results this fall.

Next Phase

Thursday, July 14, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

Nesting season is coming to an end. Most of the females have deposited their clutches forthe season. The "boxes", predator eyes seem to be doing the job of keeping the raccoonsaway from the terrapin nests. I had proof of this on Monday, July 11th, when I finishedrelocating a nest and went out to the dike to check on the areas where the boxes had beenset up. Someone had stolen one of them.

I reported the theft to the local police, who in turn put in a report to the Fish and GameCommission, since this is protected land. The material value is small, the possible loss ofnests can't be recouped. There have been no viable hatchlings from Barnegat Light, NJ for adozen or more years due to raccoons digging up the nests. So far, the "eyes" had beenworking.

When I returned to the site Tuesday morning I found 5 destroyed nests. Approximately 75hatchlings gone because someone did not respect the research. Senseless loss of life. Iguess the proof of the effectiveness of the "eyes" was evident.

John, the Drexel/Earthwatch/Mates scientist I'm working with, feels we should go to thePress with the story, as do the local homeowners. All the other protected nests are doingwell.

By the second week in August, we'll have checks twice daily on the caged , relocated neststo check for emerging hatchlings. More later.

Linda Bowman's comment

Thursday, July 28, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

Thank you Linda for your insight. Terrapins have been bouncing on and off the "Watch" list sichthe early 1900s. Since they are coast hugging turtles, brackish bay water, and nest from CapeCode to the Gulf of Mexico, they are not as threatened in some places as they are at the JerseyShore and of course now, Mexico, due to the spill. The best I can do is have them "protected"area by area. If not, they will become extirpated in certain areas.

Thanks for your concern. You should join me at the Jersey Shore, Hatchling will begin to emerge inBarnegat Light in the next few weeks for the first time in over 30 years!

It will be a media event.. I'll keep you posted..Kathy

Emergence

Monday, August 8, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

Hatchlings will begin to emerge in about 2 weeks. This is the most crucial time of the nestingproject. All of the relocated nests are in a protected area covered with wire cages. When thebabies begin to emerge they need to be taken out of the baskets, soaked for a few moments infresh water and relocated to their permanent "nursery". These spots are close to where thenests were laid and provide shallow water, hiding spots, plenty of snails, crabs, insects etc. Theterrapins are bay turtles and will stay along this stretch of beach swimming a bit further out whenthey mature. They will return in the cooler months to estivate. Hopefully, the females will returnto the beach in 10 years to lay their eggs.

Volunteers have been signed up to check the hatchery every 3 hours, from 8am till 5pm so thebabies don't die from the heat. We're giving them a needed head start by taking them to theirnursery. Usually when they hatch from their natural nests, every seagull, crow, raccoon etc. isthere to grab them before they make it to the water.

Since this is an attempt to reestablish the natural balance, we felt human intervention wasnecessary.

After all, we are responsible for throwing off the natural balance in the first place!

The First Hatchlings!

Saturday, August 13, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

The first hatchlings emerged from their nests this week and were successfully released into thebay near their original nest sites. These are the first ten babies to successfully hatch and bereleased in the Barnegat Light Bay area in too many years.

Many more nests are due to hatch in the next few weeks and on until the beginning of October.Hopefully, The US Fish and Wildlife Services will get enough public response to include theDiamondback Terrapin as a candidate for CITES listing at the upcoming meeting of participatingnations. CITES Appendices will be amended based on the submissions of member nations and thepublic has a say. But, letters must be in by August 15th.

Please show your support and go to:http.//action.biologicaldiversity.org/dia/action/public/?_KEY=7511

They need all the help they can get!

18 MORE!

Friday, August 19, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

Due to the unusually hot summer, hatchling are emerging early. This past week 18 moreemerged from 2 nests that were not yet 60 days!

Fortunately I have some very attentive "nest watchers" who spotted the babies and put them intheir tupperware containers for their first drink of fresh water. They were kept over night, notchedand released into their nurseries the following day. The "watchers" were 2 California childrenvisiting their grandparents. They have been fantastic!

Several more nests will be hatching over the weekend. The town is really excited. This is morethan I could have hoped for for the "Pilot" year. Already I have volunteers signed up for nextyears' project, lots of volunteers!

Another Dozen!

Saturday, August 20, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

Twelve more hatchlings emerged today, ready to go. They were notched and released into theirnurseries. So far we've had 100% of the eggs in the clutches successfully hatch. This isabsolutely unbelievable! I have to credit the success to the diligence of the volunteers watchingthe nests, most of whom are children!

These kids are going to guarantee the success of the project , not just this year, but for years tocome. They have all signed up as junior interns for next year!

Evacuation!

Friday, August 26, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

With Hurricane Irene threatening to slam into Long Beach Island, I took a quick trip to thehatchery in Barnegat Light yesterday. I knew I had 2 nests on the verge of hatching and if left inthe ground they would drown. When the babies begin to pip, split open their shells, they arevulnerable to heavy rains.

My kids and I went up to check and our timing was right on. When we got to the first nest wegently brushed off the top layer of sand and there were 3 little faces staring back at us! Wecontinued to brush the sand away as more of the babies literally burst to the surface. All 17turtles successfully hatched!

The next nest was almost the same. The top babies were ready to go. The bottom 8 were peakingout of their shells. I removed all the babies. None were released due to their early arrival and thepending storm. They will be released next week when all is safe. The Island was evacuated thisafternoon. They're expecting the worst. Since these were relocated nests, I' m responsible fortheir safety. In a natural setting I wouldn't have intervened, however, until this project is wellestablished, raccoons controlled etc. it is not a normal setting.

Between the 2 nests we recovered all 34 hatchlings, all healthy!

I still have 6 more nests in the ground, however they aren't due to hatch for at least 10 days, sotheir shells should protect them from the elements. My kids will be going back to school next week.Boy am I going to miss them!

Amazing Grace! And 52 Hatchlings!

Wednesday, August 31, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

With "Irene" gone, it was time to return to the shore to release the hatchlings I had accumulated.34 rescued from their nests before the storm and 18 I had been planning to release before thethreat of "Irene". The 18 had emerged early and needed some time to absorb their yolk sacs.

Tuesday was the release day and fortunately for me, my 8 year old nest watcher, Grace, was onthe island and ready to help. I've been fortunate to meet a lot of amazing kids this summer, Graceis truly one of a kind. Her winter home is a large farm, so she's been mucking out stalls andhelping with animals since she was barely 3 years old. I'm inclined to believe she's just a reallyshort 20 year old! She's up for anything. Her mother is also fantastic. We put the babies, one at atime, into their new home, wishing them all well. It was a day I will never forget! I feel goodknowing Grace will be around long after me to continue the Terrapin Project.

Terrapin Tails

Thursday, September 15, 2011 Posted by Katherine Lacey

The remaining 8 hatchlings have emerged and will be released this weekend. Thanks to thededication of 13 of the most passionate volunteers I have ever worked with, we successfullyreleased 201 terrapin hatchlings into the bay in Barnegat Light! These are the first new babies inthis area in over 2 dozen years! That's an incredible accomplishment!

In addition to the volunteers, the homeowners were key factors, calling when they spotted afemale laying a nest so it could be relocated to the safe "hatchery. All in all, it was an amazing"pilot" year for the project.

We already have plans in place for next year; more hatchery space, improved fencing, improvednest baskets, and hopefully cameras placed around the area. All the equipment will be donated.Our list of volunteers has also grown!

Good-bye little ones..be safe!....Kathy