Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring volunteers performed excavations Sept. 27 and then exited the beach and parked the all-terrain vehicles at a secure location until Hurricane Ian passed.
Then they awaited instructions and approval to start again.
Storms, even rainstorms, wash away hatchling tracks and can hide the evidence of a drop hole — the hole created when hatchlings emerge from a nest at the same time.
So, what do they do?
AMITW has a list of nests and when they were marked.
If they can’t identify a hatch, they will wait the mandatory 70 days Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission requires and then excavate the nests.
About AMITW
AMITW collects data on sea turtles and shorebirds. The data is required to meet beach renourishment contracts and AMITW is compensated by the county for its service.