I'm actually a museum herpetologist so I work with a lot of different species of turtles and tortoises as well as other reptiles and amphibians. I don't usually work with our sea turtle collection on a daily basis because they are cared for by our aquarists, but I am on duty during medical procedures and such.
I'll be heading down to a barrier island on the coast of South Carolina. Two of my friend work for the state monitoring wildlife, especially loggerhead sea turtles; this year they're hoping to top 200 active nests! I'm hoping at least one of the nights I'm down there we'll see some hatchlings!
Sounds lovely being a museum herpetologist! I can tell you're passionate about what you do. It must be great working somewhere where there are turtles to go visit every so often!
200 active nests! Wow! Are there any threats from poachers? We have ghost crabs here and monitor lizards which threaten turtle nests here. What are some threats in North America for turtles?
You'll definitely see hatchlings, and please do update us about the loggerheads! :)
I'll make a post for sure! Luckily they are the only two people on the island so poachers aren't a huge problem. Raccoons and opossums are definitely the critters to watch out for, they will happily dig up any nests they catch the scent of.
Sounds fantastic! Glad poachers won't be a problem. At least with raccoons and opossums you know it's just the cycle of life! Looking forward to reading your posts!