Nesting patrols find sea turtle nest eggs on Kiawah Island

KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. (WCBD)—Nest patrollers on Kiawah Island found their first sea turtle nest of the season on Monday. 

Team Zone Six located the nest of Loggerhead eggs on Monday morning and marked the spot with a numbered post. Loggerheads lay their eggs on the shores of Kiawah at night, and the eggs hatch around two months later, according to the town of Kiawah. Nesting season runs until the beginning of August.

Visitors to Kiawah’s shores are asked to leave nesting turtles alone and not shine lights at them, the town said. 

Hatched baby turtles crawl down the beach and swim away into the surf to live in the ocean. While exploring the ocean, Loggerheads usually eat crabs, fish, sponges, jellyfish, and whelks. Kiawah explained that each nest usually contains 100 to 150 eggs. 

The average weight for an adult Loggerhead is around 253 pounds and the grow to be about 36 inches, according to National Geographic. Their shells are reddish-brown, and they have giant heads with a strong jaw when they reach maturity. 

Nest patrols are made up of resident volunteers on the island who search for nests daily and check to see if hatchings have occurred. The program has existed since 1973 and has been funded by the town since 1990.