Loggerhead Turtle Nest Excavation-Baby Loggerheads

After a Loggerhead Turtle nest has hatched, 3 days afterwards we come back to make sure there aren’t any babies, still struggling to emerge. Although we didn’t find any live babies today, it’s pretty cool to see the process, and all that goes into it. Enjoy.

[@loumiki]

Super interesting! Hope I didn't miss this in the video....Is there a way to estimate how many hatchlings made it out of the nest (even if they didn't make it to the gulf) based on how many non-viable eggs are discovered? Thanks!

[@rangoonsworld]

Great question. That’s why we do an egg-casing count. As long as there are no dead babies in the sand area, the egg-casing count tells us how many hatched, and made it out of the nest. Then, we add the total unhatched eggs, for a total nest count. Did I answer your question? Thanks for the inquiry @loumiki

[@loumiki]

@@rangoonsworld yes, that helped to clarify!