Longboat Turtle Walk hosts final walk of the summer

As the sun is just beginning to rise, Longboat Key Turtle Watch volunteers have been up for much longer in preparation to host its Saturday walk and talk group.

At 6:45 a.m. on July 26, as about 20 people begin to gather along the shore, the volunteers hosted their final education walk of the summer. 

Volunteers, who go through training at the Mote Marine Laboratory, say what happens in these walks can be unpredictable. Each walk is informative and educational, but there could be a time when volunteers may help disoriented turtles or hatchlings.

Which is exactly what happened to volunteer Caleb Jameson when he first attended the turtle walks as a child. At his first walk, he was able to help save a turtle from disorientation and name it Sunrise.

This catapulted Jameson's interest, and he is currently getting his degree in marine biology at the New College of Florida. 

“You have to go through their training [Mote], be on permit, walk for a couple years and then be tested out in the field,” explained Connie Schindewolf on how one can become a volunteer. 

On this last walk, the group could see how turtle nest data is collected and counted, where volunteers excavate the nest (three days after nest has hatched) and count the number of hatched and un-hatched eggs, as well as measure the depth of the nest. The data collected on Saturday was 81 hatched, 19 un-hatched and 63 cm to the bottom. 

Go to LBKTurtleWatch.com to learn more about how you can support.