Video: Baby sea turtle hatchlings climb out of nest look for the ocean
The Sea Turtle Oversight Protection (STOP) rescue and release sea turtle hatchlings disoriented by coastal lighting in Broward County.
Greg Lovett, Palm Beach Post
Indian River County sets record number of green turtle nests.4,515 green turtle nest counted.50% increase in green turtles recorded in July.
Indian River County has had a record number of green sea turtle nests so far this nesting season, county officials reported Thursday.
The 4,515 nests surpassed the previous record of 4,105 in 2023, and the county is still counting, officials said Sept. 18.
All types of turtles had laid at least 11,295 nests along the county’s 22.4 miles of coastline as of Sept. 12. Nesting activity peaked in July, with 4,310 nests in a single month, a 50% increase compared to July 2024, according to the county.
Florida sea turtles are wrapping up nesting
“This extraordinary achievement reflects the ongoing countywide commitment to protecting sea turtles through daily monitoring activities, beach management strategies, and community engagement,” County Administrator John Titkanich said.
There are three species of sea turtles that nest along the sandy coastline of the county: loggerhead, green and leatherback.
“Residents and visitors are reminded that everyone has a role to play in sea turtle conservation,” County Coastal Specialist Dakota Whelan said. “Simple actions such as keeping a respectful distance from adult turtles and hatchlings, removing furniture and trash from the beach, and complying with the sea turtle lighting ordinance will make a big difference in creating a safer environment for nesting females and emerging hatchlings.”
Overall, it has been an outstanding sea turtle nesting season, with all three documented sea turtle species showing “astounding nesting numbers,” county officials said in a Sept. 18 news release.
St. Lucie County has reported 865 green sea turtle nests on its beaches, according to the county’s turtle nesting dashboard. The record number of green sea turtle nests in St. Lucie County is 2,057 in 2023, according to Ecological Associates Inc., which tracks nests in the county. Ecological Associates Outreach Coordinator Lauren Maline did not anticipate the county would break the 2023 record this nesting season, she told TCPalm.
Indian River County had 6,702 loggerhead nests and 78 leatherback nest, according to Whelan. St. Lucie County had 6,298 loggerhead and 252 leatherback nests as of July 31, according to the county’s dashboard.
Martin County had 450 green turtle nests, 2,408 loggerhead nests and 220 leatherback nests, according to Maline.
Earlier this nesting season, some beaches in Vero Beach were seeing an uptick in false crawls, and turtle conservationists raised concerns about too many people being on the beach and interacting with turtles at night.
Turtle nesting season in Florida generally runs March 31 through Oct. 31.
Green sea turtle factsThey are listed as endangered on the Endangered Species list.Greens are named for the green-colored body fat attached to their lower shell.They can reach a length of 3.2 feet and a weight up to 400 pounds.They were a key ingredient of once-popular green turtle soup.Their upper shell is oval and olive-brown with dark streaks running through it and its lower shell is yellow.During the day, green turtles occupy shallow flats and seagrass meadows. In the evening, they return to their sleeping quarters of rock ledges, oyster bars and coral reefs.
Adult green turtles have a mostly vegetarian diet of seagrasses and algae, unlike other sea turtles, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Green turtles have been greatly impacted by human behavior. European settlers in the New World ate green turtle meat, eggs and fat. Once merchants discovered they could be kept alive by turning them on their backs in shaded areas, green turtles were shipped overseas.
By 1878, the trade included 15,000 green turtles a year sent from Florida and the Caribbean to England, with Key West as a major processing center, according to the FWC.
During the breeding season, late spring and early summer, male sea turtles will migrate to offshore waters to mate with females.
Tim O’Hara is TCPalm’s environment reporter. Contact him at tim.ohara@tcpalm.com.