Sea turtle nesting season is off to a slow start on Anna Maria Island, but turtle watchers found a false crawl and a nest on Anna Maria Island the morning of May 3.
Nesting season began May 1.
A loggerhead left tracks and a nest at 74th Street, while the false crawl — evidence of a sea turtle on the beach, but no nesting activity — was observed near Pine Avenue.
The earliest sea turtle nest on Anna Maria Island was recorded April 15, 2017, Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring executive director Suzi Fox said April 29.
AMITW is a nonprofit that monitors Anna Maria Island beaches for sea turtle and shorebird nesting and collects data.
The latest first nest recorded on Anna Maria Island was May 29, 1983.
Sea turtles need the sand to be warm for their nests to incubate the eggs. Fox said the sand on Anna Maria Island might not be warm enough for turtle nests — but two loggerhead sea turtles proved her wrong.
Female sea turtles come to shore at night to nest. It’s the only time the sea turtles come ashore and their instincts are their only guide.
Nesting is the only part a mother sea turtle plays in the lives of the hatchlings, leaving the incubation and their trek to the Gulf of Mexico to Mother Nature, so she is particular with choosing the location of her nest, Fox said.
A sea turtle nest may contain 100 eggs, which take about two months to incubate, according to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Meanwhile, evidence of early nesting activity has been observed elsewhere on the Gulf coast.
The first loggerhead nest of the season on Sanibel Island was recorded April 27 by the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation.
The SCFF Sea Turtle Program surveys 18 miles of beach with the help of about 100 volunteers.
Additionally, three false crawls were recorded April 28 along the Manatee County portion of the Longboat Key beach, Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium public relations manager Stephanie Kettle said April 29.
Mote and Longboat Key Turtle Watch monitor Longboat Key. Mote holds the permit and Longboat Key Turtle Watch coordinates volunteer observers.
Mote volunteers also marked a loggerhead nest April 22 near Venice Beach.
For more information and updates on sea turtle nesting on Anna Maria Island, go to AMITW’s website at islandturtlewatch.com or call Fox at 941-778-5638.