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Wednesday - encountered a loggerhead turtle coming up the beach!
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date: 31/12/2008
Author:Laura Smith
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CONDITIONS
Weather: Sunny, very hot | Air Temp: 31.8°C | Wind: N/NW 10/15 knots | Water Temp: 26°C | Water Visibility: ~ 15 m | Sea State: Calm east, choppy west
ISLAND LIFE
Critter Encounters:
Today the heat was intense and the water inviting!
On the 11:00am boat tour, guests reported their delight at interacting with a very friendly hawksbill turtle. The turtle lingered amongst snorkellers for much of their time in the water. Others were delighted to see a small tawny nurse shark hiding under a ledge in no more than a metre’s depth of water, and the brilliance of the linckia sea star’s colouration amazed snorkellers. The dropping tide coaxed the next boat tour beyond the reef rim to deeper water, where there was so much activity amongst reef creatures! Six-bar wrasse could be seen spawning. A large lion’s mane jellyfish was an impressive sight floating near the surface. Masses of silver drummer captured the attention of passengers for many minutes as we passed the huge school. An enormous black manta ray of 3 – 4 metres wingspan was conspicuous against its light aqua-blue water background. As we made our way back to shore, we watched the long thin tail fin of a large pelagic fish slicing the water’s surface.
The underwater thrills continued on the afternoon’s snorkel safari, where seven grey reef sharks were seen in the Shark Pool, as well as a blue-spotted lagoon ray, swirling masses of big-eye trevally and lots of green sea turtles! Highlights of today’s SCUBA dives included sightings of a leopard shark and a large school of graceful eagle rays.
This morning’s island tucker tour unexpectedly encountered a loggerhead turtle coming up the beach! Guests watched her for some time as she dug about in the sand. Staff suspect that this may have been “Sunny”, a loggerhead turtle that has nested several times on Lady Elliot this season and is so-named because of her tendency to attempt nesting in broad daylight.
Special Events / Activities:
New Year’s Eve on Lady Elliot was certainly was a night to remember! A Turtle Trek kicked off the evening’s activities, and lucky guests witnessed the first steps of 25 brand new turtle hatchlings as they ran to the water from the top of the beach! On-island turtle expert Jenni enlightened guests with interesting facts about these ancient creatures while everyone watched them.
Meanwhile, our beachfront dining area was transformed into a dance floor, complete with strobe lighting, foam machine and DJ Dan Lavender to provide the music. Around 150 guests and staff counted in the New Year here on little Lady Elliot Island. It was a true island-style celebration, and the visits of turtles made it all-the-more-so! One little hatchling may just be the luckiest turtle alive - it was found waddling across the dance floor in the middle of the “Hokey Pokey”! Guests helped the little turtle by guiding it with torch beams in the direction of the water.
Some time later, a huge female loggerhead turtle chose her nesting site right in front of our beachside dance floor. She Laid her eggs at 11:30pm and then filled in until 12am where she waited for everyone to shout “HAPPY NEW YEAR!” and then made her way down to the water for the start of 2009!
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turtle hatchlings - Wayne Fox
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