Longtime turtles watchers Bill and Marilyn George, volunteer beach walkers for Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring made an exciting find early Sunday morning — Mother’s Day — the first turtle nest of the season.
The nest is on the beach at the Spring Avenue access in the city of Anna Maria — in front of the Sandbar Restaurant.
In addition to the first nest, there also were four “false crawls” spotted by AMITW volunteer walkers.
According to AMITW executive director Suzi Fox, false crawls occur when a female goes onto the beach to nest, becomes distracted and abandons the nesting attempt.
Fox said, “Mother’s Day is all about celebrating moms. On the nesting beaches of Anna Maria Island, it’s all about sea turtle moms.”
For more information on nesting season, contact Fox at suzifox@gmail.com or 941-778-5638.