Forbes Beach Neighbors Save Terrapin Nest
Neighbors near Forbes Beach in Wareham, Massachusetts came together to save a threatened diamondback terrapin nest and 14 babies-in-waiting. On June 11th, Momma Terrapin crawled ashore from the Crooked River off Forbes Beach and meandered down a nearby dirt road.
Makeshift Barrier Protects Terrapin Nest
The terrapin dug a little here, then she dug a little there, and finally she forced her nest through a compacted gravel driveway. “What to do?” wondered the neighbors. They decided to erect a makeshift triangle barrier around the nest to ensure that no one would drive over the eggs.
Carefully Excavating Nest to Harvest Fragile Eggs
They called Turtle Journal and today, with the whole community on hand, we excavated the nest, scratching our way for nearly an hour, fingertip by fingertip, through hard sharp gravel.
Terrapin Nest Forced Through Compacted Gravel Driveway
Accompanied by a chorus of oo’s and ah’s, we harvested 14 perfect eggs for relocation to a safe turtle garden to incubate for the next 60 to 90 days.
Fourteen Perfect Terrapin Eggs Harvested
Once they emerge this summer, the hatchlings will be returned to the Forbes Beach community for release into the nursery salt marsh rimming the Crooked River. Well done, Forbes Beach, as another community joins the crusade to save the world one turtle at a time.