Nest Sitters – Registration

Nest Sitters play the very important role of protecting our momma turtles while they are searching for a place to nest and laying their eggs. This is an extremely vulnerable time for turtles because they will often cross the road several times looking for the perfect spot to lay their eggs. In addition, once the females start laying their eggs, they can't stop! As a Nest Sitter you will spot nesting momma's and be their guardian angels. You will set up your watching station at a safe location a good distance away from a nesting momma (we dont want to scare her), and wait for the momma to finish laying. It is common for turtles to spend a significant amount of time searching for the perfect time to nest, so if she tries to cross the road, you will make sure that she is able to do it safetly! Once she has selected a location and finished laying her eggs you will report nest location and help her cross the road if needed!

Nest sitters are essential to the health of turtle populations. In urban, semi-urban and even exurban (rural) areas, turtle nests experience higher rates of predation because of raccoons, foxes, skunks and other animals that take advantage of human occupation. This is called subsidized nest predation. Therefore, almost all nests and eggs laid in these areas are at risk. By reporting the nests you find in these at-risk areas you are helping to save baby turtles!