In summer, an ancient reproductive ritual begins when the female leaves the sea and crawls ashore to dig a nest in the sand. She uses her rear flippers to dig the nest hole and then she deposits about 100 eggs the size of ping-pong balls. When egg-laying is complete, the turtle covers the eggs, camouflages the nest site, and returns to the ocean. Nesting turtles may return several times in a nesting season to repeat the process and usually nest every two to three years. As is true for some other reptiles, the temperature of the sea turtle nest determines the sex of the hatchlings. Warmer temperatures produce more females, whereas cooler temperatures result in more males. Consequently, conservationists prefer to leave turtle eggs in their original location whenever possible so that sex ratios are determined naturally. After incubating for about two months, the eggs begin to hatch. A few days later, 2-inch hatchlings emerge as a group. This mass exodus usually occurs at night, and the hatchlings use the bright, open view of the night sky over the water to find their way to the sea. For more info click here. Artificial lights on beachfront buildings and roadways distract hatchlings on their way to the ocean. Because of this danger, many beachfront communities in
Source: Fish and Wildlife Research Institute Visit: myfwc.com
A stroll along the beach is supposed to ease stress and aid relaxation, but for Coastal Wildlife Turtle Patrol members, the dawn’s light showcases the juxtaposition of human’s wants and needs versus the survival of wildlife. For turtle patrol volunteers, the light shows how the barrier island habitat is shrinking as condominiums line the shore of some of
Loggerhead turtles, other sea turtles and shorebirds are endangered, in large part due to human encroachment on their nesting grounds and pollution along
On a recent Saturday, some Coastal Wildlife Turtle Patrol members walked south from the Range Light to document sea turtle activity in areas known as Zone 8 and 9. A week earlier, they had found up to six or seven nest sites per day. Saturday, two nests were marked, measured and documented under islander Grace Harvey’s authorized permit holder.
This year is a good year so far for the loggerhead (Caretta caretta), according to
As of June 20, 2008, Gasparilla Island turtle nest totals as of June 20, 2008, 23 nests and 12 false crawls have been reported by Turtle Patrol volunteers and 110 nests and 60 false crawls have been reported in Lee County, according to Norma Jean Zvosec, a volunteer with the Coastal Wildlife Club Inc., an award-winning non-profit organization helping to protect endangered and threatened sea turtle nests from South Venice to Gasparilla Island.
Sadly, Saturday’s patrol also documented lack of knowledge by local residents and vacationers about the needs of sea turtles and shorebirds during the nesting season that runs between May 1 and Oct. 31 each year.
Almost immediately upon stepping onto the beach, Coastal Wildlife Club co-founder Wilma Katz and two-year volunteer Cherie Laflamme saw three things that bothered them. First, Katz stopped a porch light left on at a condominium that was shining brightly in direct line of a marked nest.
“Lights are bad for adults,” Katz said, “but light can affect hatchlings more.”
Second, Laflamme noted a nest had been inundated by the tide. “Nests can tolerate moving water,” Katz said as Laflamme documented the information in case the nest failed to hatch. Third, as far as the eye could see there were toys, beach chairs and canopies left on the beach. Laflamme pulled out a fresh tag that explains politely that beach furniture and toys should be removed from the beach nightly. She tied it to a beach chair. “This is the frustrating part,” she said as she marked on tag that had been attached to the same beach chair more than a week prior. “Either people are not informed or they lack respect. Maybe they don’t realize it can cause a turtle not to nest or cause false crawls.” Just up the beach a few yards from the site of a newly found nest, a jumble of beach furniture and an old canopy lie in a direct line south of the new nest.
While turtle nesting continues through August, by next week, loggerhead hatchings should start emerging and heading out to the Gulf waters. They will continue hatching through late October. Katz urges anyone to report any lights they see on the beach to Grace Harvey or to the condominium’s management, so the lights can be shielded or turned off between
At the moment, beach furniture and lights are the biggest detriment to nesting sea turtles as well as nesting birds. Katz pleads: “Please check the lights. We’re happily busy with nests and it’s easier for management to the check their own lights than to wait for us to notify them.
Remember, for a sea turtle mother to be, the light may confuse her as she labors in the night, so she could head toward land instead of back out to sea. And, for a hatching sea turtle, light is life. Unfortunately, sometimes the light holds a false promise and it means certain death.
Most of the lighting issues could easily be remedied with shields or a simple flick of the switch, according to Katz. “We need to have a natural light sky or the hatchlings will become disoriented.”
Editor’s note: Each week, the Gasparilla Gazette reports turtle nesting number and offers turtle tips from local
by TAMI PATZER email: tpatzer@breezenewspapers.com
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