First sea turtle nest spotted in Garden City days before season starts

HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WMBF) – South Carolina’s sea turtle nesting season has kicked off a couple of days early.

Trained volunteers with the Garden City Surfside Sea Turtle Guardians group found the first nest of the season on Monday morning.

May 1 traditionally marks the start of sea turtle nesting season in the Palmetto state, but recent activity indicated that nesting might begin early this year.

Just last week, volunteers with the North Myrtle Beach Sea Turtle Patrol noted the first “false crawl” of the season where a female loggerhead came ashore but returned to the ocean without nesting.

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“With warmer winter conditions and observations of mating loggerheads, there was some expectation that nesting would begin sooner than May, especially after the initial false crawl reported,” said biologist Michelle Pate, who oversees SCDNR’s sea turtle nesting program.

During sea turtle nesting season, over 1,500 volunteers and biologists regularly patrol South Carolina’s beaches through October to count, monitor and protect sea turtle nests.

In 2023, there were 6,618 nests along South Carolina beaches.

The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources said sea turtle nest numbers have trended up over the past decade. It has made biologists optimistic that the endangered species are beginning to recover after several decades of conservation efforts.

South Carolina beachgoers can help the state’s sea turtles by keeping beaches clean, turning beachfront lights out to avoid disorienting turtles and giving all sea turtles and nests a wide and respectful berth when encountered on the beach.