doesn't know why.
It was only the second recorded leatherback nest on Davis. The first was found in the 1960s.
Loggerhead females come ashore at night and dig nests in the sand with their flippers. The round, white, leathery eggs, as many as 126 in a clutch, are covered with packed sand. They hatch in 68 days, and the young loggerheads struggle to the surface and to the sea. 
Because of increased nests on Davis, fishermen will find more of the beach closed to vehicles this fall. Respect the closures, and watch for those baby turtles if driving the beach at night.

record 91 turtles have nested so far this season on Davis Island, reports Michael Rikard, resource manager at Cape Lookout National Seashore.
Counting the nests on Portsmouth Island and Shackleford Banks, 190 turtles have laid eggs in the park, Rikard said.
Though a good year for turtles, 2000 won't match last year when 242 nests were found in the park. Though it was the highest number of nests ever recorded in the park almost all were wiped out by the heavy surf and high tides of two hurricanes.
A couple of nests were lost on Davis during a blow in early

September, Rikard said.
All but two of the nests in the park were laid by loggerheads, a threatened species. One was laid by a green turtle and the other by an even rarer leatherback turtle. The turtle laid her nest near Mile Marker 11 on Davis, Rikard said, but the eggs didn't hatch. When he dug up the nest, Rikard found that half the eggs were infertile and the others had stopped developing. He

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you know can lend a hand, give Roy a call at 919-467-2973.
On a similar note, the club has formed a Historical Review Committee to collect old photographs that could be used in the video. The committee will also compile historical documents related to Davis Island and the formation of Cape Lookout National Seashore. If you have documents or photos you would like to donate, call Frank Tursi at 336-766-7480 (ftursi@earthlink.net) or Chester Hiatt at 336-765-3406.

Members honored
The DIFF Board of Directors at its last meeting in July gave lifetime memberships to Jim Grier and Frank Long in appreciation for their dedicated ser

vice to the club. Jim is the club's former treasurer and Frank was a longtime board member who organized the annual work trips to the island each spring. Both retired from the board in March.

Next meeting on island
The DIFF Board of Directors will hold its next meeting at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 27, in Cabin 10B on the island. After the meeting the directors will meet with Karren Brown, the superintendent of Cape Lookout National Seashore, and Liz Weston, the park's new concessionaire officer. That meeting will also be in Cabin 10B.
All DIFF members are invited to attend.

Welcome new members
Welcome to the following new members: William Austin of

Charlotte; Roger Baldwin of Lexington, S.C.; S.W. Baldwin of Rock Hill, S.C.; Shaffer W. Baldwin III of Rock Hill, S.C.; Bobby Barefoot of Benson; Bobby Bell of Charlotte; Dave Conner of Lake Wales, Fla; Dan Cushman of Hubert; C.J. Cyrus Jr. of Forest, Va.; George Elliot of Summerfield; Mark Hawks of Statesville; Ernie Holcomb of Yadkinville; Lenard E. Hudson of Dunn; Darrell Jester of Boonville; Douglas E. Jones of Leasburg; Jeff Lefler of Elkin; John Rea of Pineville; Joe Smith of Santa Rosa Beach, Fla; Joe Smith Jr. of Woodstock, Ga.; John C. Stork of Monticello, Ga.; Mark Thieme of Springfield, Mo.; Michael Voelske of Statesville; Ronald W. Warren of Dunn; Kathy Webb of Salisbury; and Kyle Winslow of Yadkinville.