Setup continues

This last week we have been concentrating on setting up the rest of the tanks ready for more terrapins. However, due to the very dry conditions we have not found any new animals as they bury themselves away under the soil and leaf litter.Our four resident terrapins have been behaving the same way making it difficult to find them as well. 

Testing the pump and filter setup that will be fitted to the breeding tanks

We still have a few turtles coming onto the beach to lay. It is now late in the season so these encounters are getting fewer and fewer. However, now there are lots of nests hatching. So we are keeping busy digging them up to see how successful they have been. Sometimes this means we find a few hatchlings that have become too weak to dig themselves out and have to help them to the water. 

Guests joining us on beach patrol and helping us dig up a nest - they were lucky enough to help release several that had become stuck in the soil

Some of the guests who watched as we released some hatchlings - how many can you spot in the picture?

A big thank you to our friend Allegra who helped us all week with our turtle patrols and also came to the centre to visit the terrapins. She made us a beautiful picture that will be part of the turtle display. 

Allegra, one of the younger guests, helping Rachel measure the turtle track

We have also started to decorate the centre and will be posting photos as we progress. We are excited to have had confirmation that our friends at Wildlife Vets International (http://www.wildlifevetsinternational.org/) will be coming out for a few days in the last week of February to join us at the centre and teach us a few things about looking after our terrapins and turtles and probably some other wildlife as well.