Shell shock: Sea turtle nesting numbers reveal a banner year

The nesting season for loggerhead sea turtles officially is over, and Hilton Head Island, like much of coastal South Carolina and Georgia, had a banner year.

The Hilton Head Sea Turtle Protection Project, administered by the Coastal Discovery Museum, tracked 356 adult loggerhead turtle tracks this season, 200 of which led to nests. That's the most since 1999, when 218 nests were found on the island. That's more than the historical average of 126 nests a year.

South Carolina counted 4,500 nests statewide for its best season since 1999 -- and its fifth highest total since 1980, said DuBose Griffin, the state's sea turtle coordinator.

Georgia finished its nesting season for rare loggerhead sea turtles with a record 1,646 nests counted along the state's 100-mile Atlantic coast. This year's count exceeded by 9 percent the previous record of 1,504 nests in 2003, though some nests were destroyed by Tropical Storm Fay in September.

Patrollers on Hilton Head relocated 94 nests to protect them from high tides and potential flooding during Tropical Storms Fay and Hanna. Five nests were lost to those storms. Two nests were lost to poachers.

Each nest on Hilton Head contained between 50 and 120 eggs. The smaller numbers could indicate first-time nesters, according to Carlos Chacon, project manager of the Hilton Head Sea Turtle Protection Project.

About 72 percent of the eggs hatched, he said. One in several thousand turtles is expected to reach adulthood.

One of the biggest threats to the hatchlings' survival is bright lights on the beach that disorient the tiny turtles as they try to find the ocean. This year, 306 warnings were issued on Hilton Head. No citations were issued.

Nesting numbers were not immediately available for Florida, which accounts for 90 percent of U.S. loggerhead nests.

Final numbers weren't in for North Carolina, though sea turtle biologist Matthew Godfrey said at least 832 nests have been counted.

The overall population of the massive turtles, which weigh up to 300 pounds, remains fragile. The federal government is considering a proposal to classify loggerheads as endangered, possibly by early 2009, after 30 years on the threatened species list.

Packet staff writer Liz Mitchell and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

WANT TO HELP?

• For more information on the Hilton Head Sea Turtle Protection Project or to adopt a nest next year, call Carlos Chacon at 843-689-3033, ext. 226.