Update on nest 69

One of the temperature data loggers buried 12 inches in the ground on the outside of the cage of nest 69 ,we can download data from it while it's in the ground.

Attached is a graph of the of temps recorded since 9/12 to 10/17.

(From Michelle Pate , SC Sea Turtle Coordinator)

First some biology about nest environment, egg development and incubation. The short version. A clutch of eggs can be vulnerable to extremes in environmental changes within the nest chamber during incubation such as moisture content of eggs absorbed from surrounding water vapor and sand, presence of dry conditions to allow proper gas exchange for developing embryo and temperature range of roughly 24 to 33C. These three conditions do not necessarily operate independent

of each other but rather one may influence the others.

When it comes to temperature, eggs subject to temperature below 22C (72F) for the last third of incubation and those that are subject to temperatures above 33F (91F) for an extended period typically are not successful.

Graph thanks to Data Czar

Keith Aspray