Example of a female Loggerhead sea turtle actively digging a nest to lay her eggs. (NPS photo from 2013)
OCRACOKE ISLAND, N.C. – The first sea turtle of the 2018 nesting season laid her eggs on an Ocracoke Island beach, according to the Cape Hatteras National Seashore Facebook page.
In 45 to 55 days, the tiny Loggerhead sea turtles will hatch and embark on a night time journey across the beach. Then they’ll live in the Atlantic Ocean.
The Cape Hatteras National Seashore park’s beaches have been monitored for sea turtle nests since 1987. The number of nests has fluctuated with the fewest in 1987 and a peak of 325 in 2017. Last year, there were 250 nests.
There are five species of sea turtles found along the Seashore: the Leatherback, Hawksbill, Kemp’s Ridley, Loggerhead and Green.
