1. { Life’s A Beach! Relocation of Sea Turtle Nests on Bald Head Island Through the Years… Will Benfield Paul Willeboordse

2. Bad Beaches vs. Bad Mothers? Relocations do indeed affect the hatching success of nests (Eldredge 2014), but… Are the reasons behind number of relocations due to inexperienced mothers or the beaches? Are there areas on BHI that are more likely to require a nest relocation Do nesting mothers become better at nest placement over time with fewer relocations?

3. Data set included nests within the past 13 years, 2003- 2015, using GPS data gathered at the time of nesting Data set included nests within the past 13 years, 2003- 2015, using GPS data gathered at the time of nesting Approximately half-mile sections of the beach were established along certain beach accesses encompassing varying factors: Approximately half-mile sections of the beach were established along certain beach accesses encompassing varying factors: Re-nourishment versus natural Re-nourishment versus natural Direction of the beach face Direction of the beach face Areas containing hardened structures – groins and construction Areas containing hardened structures – groins and construction The amount of nests in these areas was then determined and whether or not they were relocated. The amount of nests in these areas was then determined and whether or not they were relocated. A statistical analysis was run comparing these sections A statistical analysis was run comparing these sections Methods – Bad Beaches

4. Data set included returning mothers from 2012 through 2014. Data set included returning mothers from 2012 through 2014. These years were chosen based on turtle nesting habits. These years were chosen based on turtle nesting habits. Turtles will typically wait 2 to 3 years before returning to nest Turtles will typically wait 2 to 3 years before returning to nest Only turtles with a consistent nesting history at BHI were used for the study Only turtles with a consistent nesting history at BHI were used for the study Once the long term mothers were established the amount of nests laid and whether or not these nests were relocated was determined. Once the long term mothers were established the amount of nests laid and whether or not these nests were relocated was determined. Lastly, a statistical analysis was run to establish a correlation in relocations over time. Lastly, a statistical analysis was run to establish a correlation in relocations over time. Methods – Returning Mothers

5. Section 1 Access 9 to 11 South-West facing corner of BHI Experiences both re- nourishment as well as groins Terminal groin project in 2015 Overall low number of nests Majority of nests relocated

6. Section 2 Access 20 to 25 Re-nourished south beach; no groins in place Relocations and nest placement can vary year to year due to re-nourishment.

7. Section 3 Access 32 to 35 Natural South Beach, no re-nourishment or hardened structures. Average number of nests, low number of relocations

8. Section 4 Access 36 to 39 South Eastern part of BHI Encompasses Frying Pan Shoals Constantly shifting features and unpredictable tides High number of relocated nests; Low number of In-site nests

9. Section 5 Above Access 42 to the State Natural Area Sign* East-facing beach that has not undergone beach nourishment Portion of beach with low development resulting in little light pollution

11. Allows for relocation data to be uploaded to the conservancy website as a downloadable file Allows for relocation data to be uploaded to the conservancy website as a downloadable file This file can then be viewed by anyone who has downloaded the free Google Earth software This file can then be viewed by anyone who has downloaded the free Google Earth software Allows for the the casual viewer to see how the conservancy is working with sea turtles, as well as which areas of the beach have experienced varying levels of nesting turtles Allows for the the casual viewer to see how the conservancy is working with sea turtles, as well as which areas of the beach have experienced varying levels of nesting turtles The data set can be manipulated to reflect a number of traits not just relocations. For example… The data set can be manipulated to reflect a number of traits not just relocations. For example… Long term mothers Long term mothers Sea turtle species Sea turtle species Nest adopted by… Nest adopted by… Data Visualization Through Google Earth

12. 2014

13. 2013

14. 2012

15. Total data set included nests from 2003-2015 Histogram constructed, not normally distributed A Kruskal Wallis Test was used to differentiate between the five sections of beaches Large p-value shows there is no statistically significant difference between the sections

16. Data Collection ‘15 ‘14 ‘13 ‘12

17. 20152015 20142014

18. 20132013 20122012

23. Computing a MannWhitney U Test through the Social Statisics Software… For the first nesting years: Z-Score = -3.9056. p-value = 0.0001. The result is significant at p ≤ 0.05 For the recent nesting years: Z-Score = -1.723. p-value = 0.08544. The result is not significant at p≤ 0.05.

26. In 2014: - 45.45% nests relocated - 54.55% nests not relocated In 2012: - 17.39% nests relocated - 82.61% nests not relocated Possible correlation? First Time Mothers…

27. Further Research? Huge data pool with many other avenues that can be pursued: Are there “worse” sections of the beach where false crawls are more likely to occur? Is there a correlation between high percentages of relocation and years of renourishment Further statistical analysis within years and section of beach Do certain beach sections have higher hatching success rates than others A study on the amount of shoreline erosion over time in relation to sea turtle nest relocations

28. Questions?

29. 1 Way ANOVA F value > Critical F-Value F-ratio is likely to occur by chance with a p < 0.05. F score is statistically significant Difference between total in- site vs. relocated nests