The waning weeks of sea turtle season are proving to be dramatic for Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring volunteers.
A green sea turtle nest was laid in the dunes on the north shore of Anna Maria Sept. 13. According to AMITW executive director Suzi Fox, the nest isn’t due to hatch until at least mid-November, weeks past Oct. 31, the official end of nesting season.
“We’ll be cooking our turkeys and excavating nests this year,” Fox said.
The green turtle nest is the third laid on the island this year, with three false crawls.
A false crawl is when a turtle crawls onto the shore and back into the Gulf of Mexico without laying a nest.
“At one point, we went nearly 20 years without a green turtle,” Fox said. Green sea turtles historically nest every other year and are more common to the east coast of Florida.
“As of Sunday, we’re the last people in the state to have a new nest on the west coast,” Fox said.
AMITW volunteers still walk island beaches every morning looking for signs of nesting activity and evidence of hatched nests.
Several dozen turtle hatchlings made their presence known Sept. 16.
Worried onlookers on Coquina Beach called Fox when a large number of hatchlings were spotted running for the Gulf of Mexico. According to Fox, three nests in the same area hatched at the same time. Volunteer George Finn raced down to the beach to watch over the event.
Fox said she’s grateful those island homes and businesses that are using turtle-friendly outdoor lighting this late in the season.
According to Fox, the Freckled Fin Restaurant, 101 Bridge St., Bradenton Beach, “got beautiful new turtle-friendly lights. I’m so happy. They should just take a bow.”
Fox also acknowledged Wicked Cantina, 101 Seventh St. N., Bradenton Beach, and Beachhouse Restaurant, 200 Gulf Drive N., Bradenton Beach, for coming into lighting compliance.
Sea turtle hatchlings emerging from their nests use the reflection of the stars and the moon on the water to guide them to the Gulf. Lights that aren’t turtle-friendly and can be seen from the beach may cause the hatchlings to disorient, leading them away from the water, and to their death.
“I’m just very proud of everybody stepping up and turning out the lights right up to the end of season,” Fox said.
For more information, or to report sea turtle activity, contact AMITW at 941-778-5638.