Sea Turtle Nesting Season 2020

[Teresa]

May brings the start of sea turtle nesting season on the Gulf coast in South Walton Florida. Thank you for keeping all of our beaches #CleanDarkFlat all season long!

During the months of May through October, endangered sea turtles build nests in the sand and hatchlings make their way to the Gulf.

The two most common species of turtles in South Walton are Green Sea Turtles and Loggerheads. In the late spring and early summer, female sea turtles that hatched along South Walton beaches return to build nests.

Later in the summer and in the early fall, the turtle eggs in the nests begin to hatch.

South Walton Turtle Watch is a dedicated team of trained volunteers walking all of our beaches every day to identify and protect the turtles.

Friends of South Walton Sea Turtles is a group dedicated to educating the public about sea turtles and wildlife along our coast. Dozens of South Walton Volunteer Ambassadors report to our main lifeguards accesses throughout the season to provide information and answer questions for beach goers.

Follow:
South Walton Turtle Watch

Friends of South Walton Sea Turtles

 

[Teresa]

As we kick off Summer, sea turtle nesting, and beaches have reopened, please keep in mind when you're done for the day at the beach to make sure you're leaving the beach clean, flat, and dark.

If you're visiting the beach, there are a few items listed here you can do to help keep nesting conditions optimal at the end of the day.

#cleanflatdark

 

[Teresa]

South Walton Turtle Watch
May 25 2020

EDUCATION SPOTLIGHT:
Many people wonder why sea turtle conservationists are worried about things being left on the beaches every night. Why is it a big deal if they leave their chairs out, tents, toys, volleyball nets, kayaks, paddle boards, etc. Why does it matter if giant holes aren't filled in, or sand sculptures knocked down each night?

First, know that the only sea turtles who come on the beaches are the females.

~They are 25-30 years old before they're mature enough to mate.
~They come on the beach ONLY to dig and leave a nest of eggs.
~They're fabulous swimmers, but dragging their bodies on the sand is a tough time. It can take a sea turtle over an hour to drag her body to a good nesting spot, dig her nest, drop her eggs, cover her nest and then drag back to the water. You can see from this video her movements. This loggerhead can weigh 200-350lbs. Greens can weight up to 400lbs and leatherbacks up to 2000lbs. Not an easy task to maneuver on sand.

As sea turtles are important to the health of our oceans, keeping the balance of life balanced, we would like to see all of the nesting efforts easy for our girls!

Thank you for all YOU do to help these efforts by keeping the beaches in our area, in our state and around the world #cleandarkflat for all future generations!

 

[Teresa]

SWTW NESTING UPDATE
52 NESTS
43 Loggerhead
9 Green
20 FALSE CRAWLS
14 Loggerhead
6 Green

Thank you for keeping our beaches #cleandarkflat

All work done under MTP-120.

 

[Kurt]

On Seaside Beach at Bud & Alley's walkover.