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Port Aransas Inside the Moon Fun in the Sun A2 Canal Clean-up A4 Traveling Moon A9 Art Fest A16 Live Music A18 Issue 737 The Photo by Steve Coons Island Free The voiceMoon of The Island since 1996 May 31, 2018 Weekly www.islandmoon.com FREE Around The 8000 Kemp’s Ridley Turtles Predictions Island for Hurricane By Dale Rankin Season 2018 So far it’s been a bit of a strange in One Day! season here on our little sandbar Active season much with two of the four major tourist invasions behind us but the High Active season much like 2017 like 2017 100 Day Season is only a week old. By Dale Rankin Spring Break 2018 repeated the pattern of spring breaks past with full As the Coastal Bend continues to beaches and roads jammed from the dig out after Hurricane Harvey we ferry landings in Port A to Flour Bluff plow right into Hurricane Season Drive. 2018 with predictions from three of the most-followed predictors calling Memorial Day saw packed beaches for an average to above-average and some traffic backups, to Flour season. An average hurricane season Bluff Drive on Saturday and Sunday. produces 12 named storms, of which But a drive up State Highway 361 six become hurricanes, including early Sunday afternoon found very three major hurricanes. light traffic up the Landing Strip between Padre and Port A and light The National Oceanic and traffic on the streets in Port Aransas. Atmospheric Organization’s (NOAA) hurricane forecast was But there was something different released this week predicting 10- about this year’s Memorial Day and 16 named storms between June 1 it’s a pattern we’ve seen for a couple of and November 30, 2018 with five of years, maybe exacerbated by the lack those reaching hurricane-force winds of hotel space in both Port Aransas of 75 mph or higher, and one to four and on Padre Island. As we went becoming a major storms of at least down the beach talking to visitors Category 3 with wind speeds of 111. most of the people we encountered An examination of the past 15 years on the Port Aransas end came from of NOAA’s forecasts found that the well outside our area; San Antonio, agency’s predictions of the number Dallas, Austin, and points north, of significant storms, which are while on the Padre end the were day Over 8,000 Kemps Ridley sea turtles were spotted nesting on the beach at Rancho Nuevo, Mexico provided as high and low estimates, trippers from Corpus Christi or the By Dale Rankin of Kemp’s ridley nests last year at 353 are usually correct or close to correct, surrounding area. In past years about and officials there said the numbers with three of the past four years being 60 percent of the traffic coming over Crews from the Gladys Porter Zoo in Island by the numbers for this year are above normal but correct and 2017 narrowly missing the JFK Causeway during daylight Brownsville saw a sight last Saturday not as high as last year when windy the mark. hours of the peak holidays and season never seen in recorded history. Turtle Count weather conditions and warm water turned left up State Highway 361 So far this year, 153 nests have In 2017 NOAA predicted 11- When they arrived at Rancho Nuevo, near the shore, along with 40 years toward Port Aransas. A drive up that been confirmed on the Texas 17 named storms and five-nine Mexico, a five hour drive south of the of working to increase the population road both Saturday and Sunday round coast including (north to south hurricanes, of which two-four border, they witnessed an Arribada brought the record number of turtles light traffic as most of the people in state): would become major hurricanes. of 8000 nesting Kemp’s Ridley sea ashore. That number was up from arriving coming from OTB turned In fact 17 cyclones that reached turtles coming ashore to lay eggs the previous record of 209 in 2016. 0 Bolivar Peninsula on Zahn Road, or kept driving south tropical storm status, 10 of which at the same time. It was the biggest Officials said there are currently to the beach. We will have a better 0 Galveston Island became hurricanes and six of which nesting event registered in the 40 about twenty Kemp’s ridley nests in idea when we get a traffic count but were major hurricanes, including year history of the Kemp’s Ridley incubation at the turtle pins 40 miles 0 Brazoria County, N. of Surfside it is a trend we have been seeing for Hurricane Harvey, Hurricane Irma Binational Project and officials in down the National Seashore. 3 Surfside Beach and Hurricane Maria. a couple of years and this Memorial Brownsville said Wednesday they It is estimated that about 80 percent Day weekend it was very noticeable. believe there were considerably more 0 Quintana Beach Global Weather Oscillations, of the nesting Kemp’s ridley turtles Another thing likely due to Harvey turtles there but they didn’t have the which correctly predicted six named in the world come ashore at Rancho 1 Bryan Beach is that when visitors went to the ability to count them all. storms would make landfall in 2017, Nuevo and officials in Brownville beach they stayed there with a higher 1 Brazoria County, N. of Sargent including a prediction that one would The program at the zoo works said Wednesday while it is not than usual number camping. A drive Beach hit just north of Corpus Christi closely with the Dr. Donna Shaver unusual to see about 3000 turtles from the Port A jetties to Kleberg predicts roughly the same as NOAA; and the Division of Sea Turtle nesting there they had never seen 0 Sargent Beach County found vehicles almost that 2018 will be somewhat of a Science and Recovery, National Park anywhere near the 8000 turtles at exclusively showing Texas plates. We 5 Matagorda Peninsula repeat of 2017 - and possibly another Service at Padre Island National once. They have been making the trip counted four – that’s right four – out record breaker – with 16 named Seashore who have made the trek to to Rancho Nuevo since 1981. 0 Matagorda Island of state plates along that stretch out storms, eight hurricanes, four major the beach in Tamaulipas 5 San Jose Island of thousands of cars, not a scientific hurricanes, potential for four United State and also with the States hurricane landfalls – two of study by any means, but unusual Texas State Aquarium in 8 Mustang Island nonetheless. which will likely be major impact Corpus Christi. Officials 87 North Padre Island, including storms. 2017 was the most destructive Island patrol boat from the state government 79 at Padre Island National and costly season in a very long time of Tamaulipas were also on Seashore – since the 1940s. A second Island patrol boat was hand. The bi-national field 40 South Padre Island crews at Rancho Nuevo A third of the most highly touted worked Saturday, Sunday 3 Boca Chica Beach hurricane prognosticators, Colorado State University, predicts the 2018 and Monday protecting LOGGERHEAD TURTLE nests, counting turtles, and Atlantic basin hurricane season will marking areas to closely So far this year, 1 nest has been have slightly above-average activity monitor them throughout confirmed on the Texas coast due to the current weak La Niña the incubation period of 45- including (north to south in event, and warm water in the western 50 days. state): tropical Atlantic while portions of added to the fleet over the Memorial Turtles rescuers at PINS tend to a nesting the eastern tropical Atlantic and far The program at PINS 1 Galveston Island Day Weekend as the boat from turtle this week. Nueces County Emergency Service recorded a record number Hurricane cont. on A4 District 2 – known colloquially as the Flour Bluff Fire Department – A little Island history deployed their boat to The Island to join the one from the Nueces County Sheriff’s office. A History of Island Hurricanes for the Month of June We picked up reports this week By Dale Rankin of one every 6.25 years. The longest of more mail thefts from Island gap between hurricanes on the Texas Since 1851 93 Tropical Storms mailboxes and even a case of gasoline coast is 16 years from 1886 to 1902. syphoned from a vehicle. There were have formed in the Atlantic Basin, also reports of cars being tagged with along with 33 hurricanes, 19 of But what about June storms in the spray paint. which made landfall. Gulf of Mexico, and particularly along the Texas Coast? Texas’ storms In an average year, no tropical Stuck like Chuck have traditionally hit in the early or storms or hurricanes form during late part of the season with the most Drivers entering the open space the whole month of the June in the frequent months on the Texas Coast Atlantic Basin, however, the past being August and September. few years have been exceptions, as tropical storms formed during 2017 was an active June season with the month of June, with Tropical Tropical Storm Arlene forming in Storm Alberto this week being the April, Tropical Storm Bret in mid- latest though it actually formed June which, according to Colorado in May. Since modern weather State University, was the earliest records began half of the Junes do storm on record to form in the Main not see any named storms, this year Development Region near the coast on the east side of Lake Padre is the exception.
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