Inventory of Nest #9 on Sullivan's September 13

Nest #9 was found by Jessica Hatfield and Lisa Seglem on July 19 where it was laid about halfway between Station 26 and 26 ½. We don’t know how many eggs were laid because the mother loggerhead laid them in a good spot with no relocation necessary – or at least it was a good spot at the time in the dunes not threatened by the tide. However, erosion from the passing of Hurricane Erin began a cycle where the ocean started eating away at the dunes in this block when the moon was full and at the new moon. Erosion had washed away Nest 6 as the turtles were emerging and washing away all but 6 eggs from Nest 10 which was laid on July 27 eight days after the current Nest #9.

On the day of the inventory for Nest 9 the egg chamber was perched precariously on the edge of a five foot escarpment, but the contents were still intact. We counted 116 empty eggshells, nine undeveloped eggs no live hatchlings and one dead hatchling that was used for a DNA sample to determine paternity. Hatch Success was 92% and Emergence Success was 91.2%.

Nest #10 was found by Joanne Higgins on July 27 at Station 29 and was washed out by Hurricane Erin on August 21. Six eggs were found on the dunes that had washed out of the egg chamber. All 110 of the other eggs were washed away. These six were saved and reburied in the hope that they would hatch. But examination today showed embryos that were only one centimeter long with dark eye spots. They obviously died on August 21 and will never hatch; so the sign for this nest was taken down, and the nest was recorded as lost to Erin's tidal surge.