How to bury 100+ turtle eggs

To start, find a nesting mother turtle. It doesn't have to be a Kemp's Ridley, though they might be the easiest turtle to spot due to their daytime nesting behavior. As I had previously mentioned they also nest in arribadas. To give you an idea of what an arribada once was - in 1947 there was video footage of an arribada in Tamaulipas, Mexico. In one day an estimated 40,000 female Kemp's nested on the Mexican beaches.

Can I just emphasize something here...40,000 turtles in one day

I'm getting off topic. I'll talk more of this another day.

So once if you actually find a nesting mother you're in luck. What a patroller looks for while scouring the beaches is a set of tracks. Where the tracks meet is generally the nesting site. Once the nest is found (a whole different process i won't get into now) the eggs are removed from the environment.

Lauren excavating the nest.
**Nina Nahvi

The styofoam container protects nearly 100 eggs. The natal sand is also transported.
It is believed to have antimicrobial and antifungal mucus. A study that has yet
to be confirmed.
**Lauren Miller

Once the eggs are obtained, they are brought back to the corral. A sea turtle corral is an enclosed area of sand that's primary purpose is to prevent any kind of predation. The animals found feeding on eggs come in all sizes. Coyotes, feral dogs and cats, and crabs all prey upon the turtle eggs, even fire ants! The corral must be positioned in an area of the beach where the sand doesn't get too dry but the sand cannot be subject to high tidal action.

Stoked! Nina and her first nest :)
**Lauren Miller

Apparently the excitement is contagious...Anthony holding the eggs for the drive to the corral.

So the eggs are now at the corral and they need to be reburied. Turtle eggs are leathery as they are dropped from the female so our goal is to transport them while they are soft. 

Jefe letting Anthony and Lauren touch the eggs 

The next step is doing exactly what the momma turtle did a a few hours before. The correct size and shape of the nest is absolutely vital. The nest look shape resembles and upside down light bulb. If the walls of the nest are shaped at an angle, improper gas exchange may occur resulting in a low hatch rate. If the nest isn't bulbed enough not all of the eggs will be incubated at the correct temperature range. The depth should be about the length of a grown man's forearm - or up to my bicep...haha

Jefe ensuring the depth is correct

Jefe scooping the nest...it's all in the wrist. 

So the female is able to dig this entire nest with her rear flippers, a feat that seems impossible. Once the correct shape is dug, the eggs are counted again. This particular nest had 92 eggs (I know I know, not over 100 this time). It's important to get the number correct since successful hatch ratios are recorded for each nest. Halfway through burying the little guys, we plant a data logger that will record the temperature over the incubation period (45-50 days).

The natal sand then fills in the whole and a stake marks the precise location of the nest. The stake is dated and numbered and helps us regulate the amount of sand over the nest. Every Monday we keep general maintenance of the corral by leveling, shoveling and moving sand.

As of May 08 we have 20 nests! Come July I hope to report thousands of babies :)

Hasta la vista