Rare leatherback turtle lays eggs on NC beach
HOLDEN BEACH, N.C. (AP) – Eggs from a rare leatherback turtle
are safer on a North Carolina beach, thanks to the work of
volunteers who saw the nesting turtle and moved the eggs to higher
ground.
Mary Marwitz of the Holden Beach Turtle Patrol says volunteers saw the turtle
earlier this week. She estimated the turtle at 6-feet-long and 800
pounds.
Marwitz watched the turtle for about 30 minutes early Tuesday
until she went back out to sea. Volunteers then moved about 70 eggs
to an area away from the high tide line. They staked off the nest
to alert beachgoers and added grates and fox cages to stop
predators from eating the eggs.
Leatherbacks are the largest living reptiles in the world and
are endangered. Marwitz says they usually prefer to nest farther
south than North Carolina.
(Copyright 2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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