North Carolina coast sea turtle hatchling season starts at Outer Banks, other island beaches

CAPE LOOKOUT, N.C. (WNCN) — Activity at the North Carolina coast is heating up — especially on the beach along the sand to the surf.

The first turtle nest hatched late last week at the Outer Banks, according to the Cape Lookout National Seashore at the southern end of the Outer Banks, just east of Beaufort and the Morehead City area.

“Cape Lookout National Seashore had its first turtle nest hatch this week!” National Seashore officials announced, along with a video of a baby turtle scooting along the beach on Thursday.

Loggerhead, Green, Leatherback, and Kemp Ridley’s sea turtles’ nests have been found at the seashore in the past. Each nest of some turtles can contain between 100 to 120 eggs.

Last weekend, Holden Beach — further south in Brunswick County — predicted sea turtles on their island would hatch soon and make a beach sand journey to the sea.

Well, the hatchlings emerged in force on Thursday night — with at least two dozen little sea turtles in just one photo.

“The hatching season has begun on Holden Beach!” Holden Beach officials wrote on social media, along with several photos of the baby turtles pointed toward the ocean.

“The first two sea turtle nests on our beach hatched last night within minutes of each other. What excitement on the beach,” Holden Beach town officials said.

Holden Beach Turtle Watch later reported 89 babies from one nest and 69 hatchlings from another nest, which both hatched Thursday night. There were 27 nests at Holden Beach as of midway through July, with a large majority of those Loggerhead turtles.

On Topsail Island, the first sea turtle nest was dug on May 8 this year, according to the Topsail Sea Turtle Project. With 60 days for incubation, some of the 70 nests along North Topsail Beach, Surf City and Topsail Beach should be hatching very soon.

To the north on the Outer Banks at Cape Hatteras National Seashore, the sea turtle hatching season typically starts in August and lasts through October.

So far this year, park workers have counted 162 sea turtle nests between Bodie, Hatteras and Ocracoke islands. With 100 to 120 eggs in each nest, there will be many baby turtles emerging soon in other areas of the Outer Banks.

On July 11, Holden Beach officials said they were about halfway through the sea turtle season. Just three days earlier, a momma loggerhead dug her nest and laid her eggs, officials said.

Along Cape Lookout, to give the sea turtles a better chance at survival, biologists erect closures to vehicles driving on beaches. These closures help prevent tire tracks in which hatchlings can get stuck.

During hatchling season, wildlife officials with the Holden Beach Turtle Watch have several tips to help sea turtles:

• At night, turn off all lights that face the ocean, including carports. Close blinds and draperies in oceanfront rooms between May 1 and October 31.
• No flashlights on the beach and never shine a light directly on a mother turtle, baby turtle or at a nest.
• Do not use flash cameras or shine a light on a mother turtle or baby turtle on the beach.
• Fill in any large sand holes before nightfall, as they could trap a turtle.
• All beach equipment must be removed from the beach each day to make a clear path for the mothers to lay nests and babies to walk to the ocean
• Do not leave trash, especially plastic, on the beach and do not release balloons because biologists say those items look like jellyfish to sea turtles.