Inventory NMB Nest #7

North NMB Nest #7, 41st Ave N, Cherry Grove, the last nest on NMB.   This nest emerged on Day 56, after a very stormy week....hard rains made the sand very hard packed......

Sand is smooth, no holes, no depression, What is going on under the sand?

Next Morning, a large hole, hatchlings have emerged

4 days later, time to inventory the nest

Crowd starts to gather

Meredith and Beth dig up the egg chamber

Egg chamber is very deep, but shells are finally found.  Hatched egg shells as well

as whole eggs are finally pulled from the hole

1 live hatchling is found at the bottom of the hole

But this little guy is not dong to well....It's head is deformed, mouth is crooked, eyes do not match

But the hatchling is released on the beach and the crowd watches as the brave little hatchling 

makes it way to the ocean, head seems heavy and many times the hatchling goes around

around in circles, but straightens out and crawls to the ocean.

Inventory Results

118 eggs in original nest, 117 eggs moved back above the HTL

Nest incubated for 56 days

110 hatched eggs

6 unhatched or whole eggs

1 pipped egg, hatchling died while emerging from shell

1 live hatchling, released on the beach

94% hatching success rate