Week Four!

       Hey guys! I guess from now on I'll be updating a few days late since the library closes way too early on the weekends and I can't get here in time. I can't believe I've finished week four though already! Things are starting to get a bit more interesting too! Here's the count so far:

Total Nests: 170
Total Turtles Tagged: 231

       We're on a role! The most nests they've ever found is around 280 and, while we may not get that many this year, we are well above last year's high in the 130's.
       We're starting to catch a lot of turtles in the nets that we've already tagged, but everyday we seem to get at least a few more new ones. We're also not finding as many nests these days since the nesting season is starting to die down and a lot of nests get covered up by the rain and wind. However, the eggs should start hatching any day now and that's when the fun starts! We've started fencing all of the nests to capture the baby turtles so that ,when they start popping out, we can take them all back to the turtle shed for processing. Some of the hatchlings we'll be releasing, but a lot of them will be going to schools all across Maryland for our Head Start program. This program allows elementary students to raise the turtles for one year, then release them on Poplar Island to give them a "head start" on life. I'll be making a blog about that pretty soon once they start hatching. We're also going to start on telemetry, where we attach a device onto the turtles and set them free so that we can see where they go by following them using sonar in the water.

Fencing around the nests to catch hatchlings. The board is
placed over the top for shade.

       Other than that, everyday is pretty much the same so far. Two of us look for nests and the other two check the nets for turtles and process them. Then, after lunch, we double check certain areas or search the "wrack" for baby turtles. The wrack is basically an area with dead grass-like plants that we sift through with our hands. (Not my favorite thing with all the bending over we have to do haha). I'm getting excited for the hatchlings and telemetry though so stay tuned!

Bug Bite count for week four= 5