Wild Nite
Press Release
Submitted by Jay Kayne
November 5, 2021
On November 9, 2021, beginning at 7:00 PM EST, Wild Amelia will host its monthly Wild Nite presentation featuring Mary Duffy, President of Amelia Island Sea Turtle Watch (AISTW). Her talk, followed by Q&A, will focus on the 2021 nesting season, challenges sea turtles face and what that means for their future survival, the work of AISTW and what each of us can do to help sea turtles survive.
Mary founded AISTW in 1985, while serving as a teacher and administrator in the Nassau County School District for 37 years. AISTW started with eight committed volunteers who began collecting data about the loggerhead and occasional green and leatherback turtles that next on Amelia Island. Incorporated in 1988, AISTW operates under a permit from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Now over 100 volunteers walk the beaches at dawn looking for turtle tracks. Permitted volunteers are called to verify and mark the nests. The nests will be monitored for about two months. Three days after the baby turtles emerge, the group will excavate the nest to determine the exact numbers of shards, dead pips, and live hatchlings still in the nest. Each nest has about 100-150 eggs. The hatchlings that emerge from these nests some 50-60 days later will face peril as they make their way to the sea and once in the sea. It is estimated only one in 1000 will survive to adulthood!
Due to continuing CDC guidance related to large indoor gatherings, this free event will be held virtually on Zoom and can be accessed using the following Zoom link: https://bit.ly/3BvUfQe. It can also be accessed with the Meeting ID: 824 1640 7810 and Passcode: 773278.
Wild Amelia’s mission is to educate residents and visitors about the local bioregion and encourage stewardship of the area’s natural resources through events and programs that educate and entertain while promoting a conservation ethic. For updates on the status of program activities, please visit wildamelia.org and Wild Amelia on Facebook.