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This is what we saw while fishing the poundnets wth Leonard (see Larisa's blog about this activity) one morning in late July in Core Sound. I expected to see a tornado and/or waterspout, but we were only pelted with rain. Just another one of those days that makes a good story for later on.
What species is this?
This turtle flipper was delivered to Beaufort this week, for the purposes of species identification. Fortunately, one of the best-qualified persons for determining the species of various flippers is based at the NOAA Beaufort Lab, and sure enough, Larisa was able to positively assign what species it belonged to. But before I give out the answer, I am curious of what others think it might be. Would you care to try to identify the species of this flipper? Give your answer in the comments below. I will post the answer in early August.
Hawksbills are rarely seen in North Carolina waters (less than one per year on average). So what was a small, year-old hawksbill doing up near the North Carolina/Viginia border earlier this year?
Nobody knows, but it since it was found stranded and sick on the beach by a stranding network volunteer, it has slowly been migrating southwards. First, it was treated and successfully rehabilitated at the N.E.S.T. sea turtle facility at the Roanoke Aquarium in Manteo. Then it came down to the PKS Aquarium in Pine Knoll Shores, where it remained in captivity while plans were devised for the best way to release it. After several phone calls to different persons responsible for sea turtles in the larger region, it was decided to send the hawksbill to Florida where it would be released off the eastern coast. But how to get it from North Carolina to Florida? Luckily, Jeanette Wyneken was in the midst of her annual pilgrimage from Florida to North Carolina, where she collaborates on research projects and lectures during the summer sea turtle course at Duke University. She graciously offered to pick up this small hitchhiker and drive it to the Marinelife Center in Juno Beach, Florida on her way back to Boca Raton (she even serviced her air-conditioning unit in her car to ensure that this turtle would not be overheated during the 16+ hour drive). The folks at the Marinelife Center will arrange for the final release into the Atlantic Ocean. Although not as easy as clicking its heels three times, the journey home for this turtle is an example of the tremendous good-will and shared efforts of many thankless individuals and organizations.
Every once in a while, the heavens will be in the right alignment and things will come together nicely. Such is the case last week, when I met up with Brendan Godley and Annette Broderick on Bald Head Island to deploy satellite telemetry tags on nesting female loggerheads. Not only was it nice to catch up with some old friends and their family, but also it was good to be able to work on the same project at the same time. The fieldwork was relatively easy (thanks in part to the tireless efforts of the BHIC interns), the turtles were accessible, and the night sky beautiful. Plus, whenever I am around Brendan and Annette, I either learn new things or they make me think of things from a different perspective. And, we always have a good laugh at each other and ourselves.
Thanks to Caitlin Hicks for taking the photo!
One of the nicest things about being here in North Carolina is the possibility of interaction with other people who work on sea turtles. For instance, I was lucky that Catherine McClellan recently took me out on Core Sound (see photo) to show me how she attaches PTTs to juvenile turtles. And there are dozens of other people here who have shared much information and knowledge with me. Of course, there are also the hundreds of volunteers and participants in the North Carolina Sea Turtle Project who continually show me new things or express alternative ideas. It is great to be able to learn so much from so many different people.