First Turtle!

The night started off with rain, which is auspicious in India (if nowhere else). We waited it out fully decked out in our rain gear, because it doesn't seem to rain for long here. We left half an hour later than usual, and by the time we got to the beach it had stopped. I have to say, even after the rain the beach was fantastic. Scudding clouds showed a peep of stars here and there and the wind, though strong, was warm. The damp sand did what sand does, whether dry or wet - gets in most places unless you have awesome rain pants and a rain jacket!

The second patrol found a turtle at about 10:15 PM. Sea turtles come up at night to lay their eggs to protect against predators. We walked over with our headlamps off, and in the darkness (hard to see with dark clouds) could just make out a huge shape. These are Leatherback turtles - the largest, who are able to dive up to 4000 feet (~1200 m) and so their shells are able to compress a little because of the water pressure, hence the name.

Piece missing of right flipper

Her rear right flipper had been bitten off by something - likely a shark so she was having trouble digging her egg chamber (a small, but deep hole). So, Kimron the supervisor got down on his knees and helped her dig. We use red headlamps as they can't see that wavelength well and only stay around her rear so as not to fluster her more than necessary. When she was satisfied that it was deep enough, she got ready to lay (her two rear flippers cover the hole). Volunteer S (not me) got to play midwife and did a great job of getting the eggs out of the hole and into a bucket (only done when they're being moved). The turtle laid 105 eggs which we had to move because her egg chamber was too close to the sea and they would have drowned. The water line of the beach is high at the moment - only about 5-15 feet in places between the water line and the vegetation, which is also bad for the eggs, as the extending plant roots can grow through the eggs. Later in the season the water line apparently drops so there is more beach space.

A bucket full of eggs! Arrows show smaller yolkless eggs.

Finally, the turtle spent a long time covering the hole and then threw sand around all over and kept moving around to different spots to disguise the spot where the eggs were. How clever! If we are not moving the eggs, we have to put a rope in the hole before she finishes covering it up so that we can take measurements of where it is. Otherwise even having seen it, you wouldn't be able to find it.

She then made her way slowly back to the sea; a dark shape against a dark sea. Little diamonds of phosphorescence glinted in the waves around her and on the sand. Finally, with eyes straining in the darkness, the only way to see her was the dark space which the white froth of surf closed around, and then she was finally gone. It gave me goose bumps.