Nesting Season Statistics | Alabama Sea Turtle "Share the Beach" volunteer program

Nesting season begins in May and that's when we begin to see females coming ashore to lay their eggs. They lay an average of 100 eggs per nest. The incubation period is from 55 to 70 days.

Alabama's coastline is divided into several areas which are patrolled by Share the Beach volunteers. These volunteers devote their time to searching for new nests, marking the nests and protecting the nests and hatchlings from natural and, more likely, human-related dangers.

In 2005, thirty-seven loggerhead nests and one possibly Kemps Ridley were identified along the coast. Throughout the summer, the coast was impacted by four named storms which affected the sea turtle nests by inundating them with water, covering them with large amounts of sand, or washing them away.

In the 2006 season, Forty-five loggerhead (Caretta caretta) nests and one Kemps Ridley were identified from Dauphin Island (Mobile County) east to Alabama Point (Baldwin County) near the Florida state line. Only four nests were lost due to Tropical Storm Alberto and a non-tropical storm in mid-October. Many of the nests were adopted through the Adopt-A-Nest program, which provided the funds needed to purchase a new Polaris ATV. It is estimated that 3,603 hatchling safely made it into the Gulf of Mexico.

In the 2007 season, there were fifty-four loggerhead nests and one Kemps Ridley. Share the Beach had an outstanding year along the Alabama Gulf Coast. Many of the nests were adopted through the Adopt-A-Nest program, which provided the funds needed to help Friends of Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge purchase a new supplies for marking and monitoring nests. Through the contributions made by our dedicated volunteers, it is estimated that 3465 hatchling safely made it into the Gulf of Mexico.

In the 2008 season, with the help of dedicated volunteers, Share the Beach had an average year along the Alabama Gulf Coast. Seventy-eight loggerhead (Caretta caretta)nests and one Kemps Ridley were identified. Through the contributions made by our dedicated volunteers, it is estimated that 3520 hatchling safely made it into the Gulf of Mexico.

From 2003 – 2008 an estimated 17,390 hatchlings safely entered into the Gulf of Mexico.

If you are visiting the beach and see signs of a new nest (a large "crawl line" to and from the water), or vandalism to a nest, please call 965-6378 or 1-866-SEA TURTLE to report it.

How Are They Doing? - Seasonal Statistics

As the new season begins for 2009, check the totals below to see the latest information on this season's activity. Check the totals below to see the latest information on this season's activity. Also, visit www.SeaTurtleVolunteers.org for pictures of turtle nests and crawls.

AlabamaPoint - I

ID	Date Found	# Eggs	1st Emergence	# to water	# Hatched	Survival %
I-1	7/2/2009	109	9/3/2009	100	100	92
I-2	7/7/2009	142	9/5/2009	107	107	80
I-3	7/11/2009	85	9/15/2009	6	6	7
I-4	7/23/2009	106	9/27/2009	102	102	96
I-5	8/2/2009	83	10/8/2009	42	42	51

East Beach - E

ID	Date Found	# Eggs	1st Emergence	# to water	# Hatched	Survival %
E-1	5/29/2009	98	7/28/2009	27	27	28

Fort Morgan - A

ID	Date Found	# Eggs	1st Emergence	# to water	# Hatched	Survival %
A-1	5/18/2009	81		0	0	0
A-2	5/27/2009	119	7/23/2009	81	81	68
A-3	5/31/2009	108	8/1/2009	104	105	96
A-4	6/3/2009	110	8/1/2009	106	106	96
A-5	6/3/2009	110	8/9/2009	82	87	75
A-6	6/5/2009	108	8/6/2009	79	80	73
A-7	6/8/2009	106	8/8/2009	0	0	0
A-8	6/10/2009	120	8/1/2009		113
A-9	6/10/2009	119	8/12/2009	38	38	32
A-10	6/14/2009	110	8/11/2009	104	104	95
A-11	6/15/2009	135	8/11/2009	105	116	78
A-12	6/17/2009	104	8/13/2009	99	99	95
A-13	6/18/2009	106
A-14	6/19/2009	152	8/13/2009	130	130	86
A-15	6/21/2009	141	8/22/2009	78	105	74
A-16	6/24/2009	86	8/20/2009	61	76	81
A-17	6/26/2009	112	8/23/2009	50	108	46
A-18	6/27/2009	105	8/22/2009	99	99	94
A-19	7/1/2009	109	8/27/2009	88	102	81
A-20	7/3/2009	144	9/5/2009	136	136	94
A-21	7/3/2009	51				0
A-23	7/5/2009	0		0	0	0
A-22	7/12/2009	121	9/11/2009	117	117	97
A-24	7/13/2009
A-25	7/16/2009	129
A-26	7/17/2009
A-27	7/18/2009	94	9/16/2009	62	62	67
A-28	7/19/2009	133	9/21/2009	122	122	92
A-29	7/21/2009	110	9/24/2009	30
A-30	7/23/2009	105	9/18/2009	89	89	85
A-31	7/25/2009	119		0	0	0
A-32	7/27/2009	102
A-44	7/29/2009
A-33	8/1/2009	125	10/3/2009	71	71	57
A-34	8/1/2009	89		0	0	0
A-35	8/3/2009	130	10/7/2009	94
A-36	8/5/2009
A-37	8/6/2009
A-38	8/6/2009
A-39	8/7/2009
A-40	8/8/2009	102	10/17/2009	73	73	72
A-41	8/9/2009	108	10/11/2009	105	105	99
A-42	8/16/2009	117	10/25/2009	115	115	98
A-43	8/28/2009

Gulf State Park - G

ID	Date Found	# Eggs	1st Emergence	# to water	# Hatched	Survival %
G-1	6/14/2009	106	8/14/2009	102	102	96
G-2	6/30/2009	84	9/5/2009	56	56	67
G-3	7/16/2009	92
G-4	7/26/2009

Laguna Key - B

ID	Date Found	# Eggs	1st Emergence	# to water	# Hatched	Survival %
B-1	6/11/2009	120	8/1/2009	106	106	88
B-2	6/15/2009	95	8/12/2009	59	65	62
B-3	6/19/2009	111	8/12/2009	110	110	99
B-4	6/28/2009	128	8/19/2009	122	123	95
B-5	7/6/2009	131	8/29/2009	100	103	76
B-6	7/13/2009	112	9/14/2009	107	107	96
B-7	8/19/2009	102		0	0	0

Orange Beach - H

ID	Date Found	# Eggs	1st Emergence	# to water	# Hatched	Survival %
H-1	6/13/2009	103		0	0	0
H-2	7/6/2009	141	9/2/2009	132	132	94
H-3	7/12/2009	108	9/12/2009	101	101	94
H-4	7/22/2009	127	9/28/2009	119	119	94

West Beach II - C

ID	Date Found	# Eggs	1st Emergence	# to water	# Hatched	Survival %
C-1	6/30/2009	102	8/27/2009	22	24	22