Organizations sponsor nighttime sea turtle walks on area beaches
SPRING 2022: 55
From spring to
fall, turtle tracks
to and from
the sea can be
found on Brevard
County beaches.
revard County’s 71
miles of coastline
is one of the most
active areas for
sea turtle nesting
in the United States. Three
species of turtles commonly
come ashore to lay their
eggs on Brevard’s beaches:
loggerheads, greens, and
leatherbacks. Altogether,
preliminary numbers show
nearly 40,000 nests were
recorded on the Space Coast
last year.
Loggerheads are the most
common on local beaches,
then greens, and lastly
the very rare leatherbacks.
Florida has the prime nesting
beaches for loggerhead
turtles, the largest nesting
location in the world.
Hawksbill and Kemp Ridley
turtles occasionally will nest
on Brevard beaches.
Nesting generally takes place
from March to November.
The species come ashore at
different times. Usually the
leatherback season starts
in March and ends by June,
and there are very few nests
because they are so rare.
The loggerheads start
arriving in April and are
usually done by August and
account for the majority of
the Brevard nestings. The
green turtle nesting season
usually begins in May and
>>
B
Loggerheads start
arriving in April to
deposit their eggs and
are usually done by
August and account
for the majority of the
Brevard nestings.
FRED MAYS
JOEL COHEN, SEA TURTLE PRESERVATION SOCIETY