You need to know, this matters:
Florida’s beaches are seeing something remarkable this year: a record number of loggerhead sea turtle nests.
Loggerheads have been nesting here since the time of the dinosaurs and like the rest of the Sunshine State, it seems like their population is booming once again.
Elizabeth Fleming, senior Florida representative for Defenders of Wildlife, said what happens on Florida’s beaches matters far beyond the state.
“If you don’t know this, Florida is the No. 1 nesting site for loggerheads in the entire world. It’s not only that we’re important, we are globally significant,” Fleming explained.
Fleming pointed out sea turtles are slow to mature, some don’t reach sexual maturity until 25 to 35, so it takes decades to see results. Florida has 90% of all U.S. sea turtles and its sea turtle license plate is the second most popular specialty plate, funding conservation and research.
The record season followed more than 50 years of protections under the Endangered Species Act. Fleming argued the law has turned the tide for species once on the brink.
“The Endangered Species Act brought about incredible change and it reversed the course that was leading some of these species to the brink of extinction, and their rebound in Florida is a major part of that,” Fleming asserted.
She cautioned the gains are now at risk. The federal government recently eliminated the regulatory definition of “harm” under the Endangered Species Act, which could weaken habitat protections. Fleming noted habitat destruction has been the major threat over time but as climate change continues, warmer sand affects the sex of hatchlings and stronger storms threaten food sources.
She stressed the threats intersect. Sea level rise swallows beaches and development prevents them from moving inland. The rule took effect after Florida Republicans helped block a bill to amend the Endangered Species Act, which would have weakened it further.