Kiawah Island, SC – It is nesting season for the Loggerhead Turtles from mid-May until early August. The loggerhead was listed as a threatened species in 1978 under the Endangered Species Act so please do not approach or disturb nesting turtles and abstain from shining lights on them. They are residents of the open ocean and make their way onto the Kiawah Island beaches during the nighttime hours to dig a nest and lay their eggs. Nests normally contain between 100 and 150 eggs which will hatch in approximately two months. The hatchlings will make their way down the beach and into the surf.
Nesting efforts are monitored on our beaches by a group of resident volunteers each year and this program has been in place since 1973. The Town of Kiawah Island has provided funding and logistical support to the turtle program since 1990. The volunteers patrol the entire beach during nesting season by truck each morning to locate nests laid the previous night.
Once located, the nest is marked with a numbered post or moved landward is its too low on the beach to protect them from being washed over by high tides. To personally watch a nest begin to hatch is an experience that will remain with you forever. Consider a Kiawah Island Vacation Rental with Akers and Ellis Kiawah Island Real Estate featuring villas, condos and estate homes.