Hey, I had a fast connection today, and managed to upload a pic of me and a hand covered in turtle love juice. Icky and super-cool at the exact same time! Happy Thanksgiving!
I'll try to add a couple more and then do a blog about a whale shark encounter
Here is a flattering shot of me counting the eggs - note the
look of concentration as I try to keep track of all the slippery ping-pong balls dropping through my fingers. We always try to guess how many she will lay - Price's Right style - so there were beers riding on the count! I think this one laid 165.
Here is another closeup pic of a nest, right before the Mom started to cover her clutch with sand and beach debris. She really tried to do a good job and there was sand and palm fronds flying everywhere for a long time! This nest contained 123 eggs and was the last one we found before returning to the main camp on Mahe. The Mom actually flicked several coconuts on top of the hidden nest to really make it hard to find. She got done as the sun was setting and it was hilarious watching her take the most difficult route back to the water - over logs and bouncing around some large boulders, instead of the straight-line, direct all sand route to the ocean's edge. Maybe they try to leave confusing tracks?
