ends by September or October.
Two of the Brevard
nesting turtles are listed
as endangered green and
loggerhead. The mammoth
leatherback, the largest turtle
species, is listed as vulnerable
worldwide, but critically
endangered in the southwest
Atlantic waters around Florida
and the Caribbean.
TURTLE TRACKING
The job of tracking turtles
in Brevard primarily falls to
several groups: The Sea Turtle
Preservation Society, the
University of Central Florida
Marine Turtle Research
Group and the Sea Turtle
Conservancy. Working under
permits from the Florida Fish
and Wildlife Commission,
each has a specific area of the
Brevard coast that it patrols
daily during nesting season to
find and mark new nests.
The turtles usually come
ashore at night. Finding
turtle tracks on the beach
in the morning is a pretty
common occurrence. But not
all tracks lead to a nest. There
are many false crawls where,
for whatever reason, the
turtle turns around and goes
back to sea without nesting.
Sometimes the turtle may
56: SPACE COAST LIVING | SPACECOASTLIVING.COM
A trained volunteer
for the the Sea Turtle
Preservation Society
measures a turtle.
crawl onto the beach several
times in the same night
before nesting.
The nesting process can take
up to several hours from the
time the turtle arrives on
the beach. Loggerheads nest
rather quickly while greens
take some time. Each nest
typically has 80-120 eggs. It
takes about two months for
the eggs to hatch, and that is
the beginning of an arduous
and dangerous life for the
tiny hatchlings.
From the nest the baby
turtles have to crawl down
the beach to the ocean, then
swim as far as 20 miles out
to sea to the sargassum sea
weed where they can feed
and hide from predators.
DANGEROUS BABY STEPS
During this trek the baby
turtles have to contend with
predators like birds, ghost
crabs, raccoons and coyotes
on the beach. Then many fall
prey to fish and sharks. Some
are caught up in fishing nets
and drown. Craig Konkel of
the Sea Turtle Preservation
Society in Brevard County
says only about one in a
thousand hatchlings live to
become adults.
SEA TURTLE PRESERVATION SOCIETY
Anyone interested in
witnessing the nesting
process, can participate in
nighttime turtle walks led
by several organizations
including Sea Turtle
Preservation Society, Sea
Turtle Conservancy, Friends
of the Carr Refuge, and
Sebastian Inlet State Park.
Sebastian Inlet State Park
Ranger Addy Finegan says
walks will be scheduled four
nights a week, and have a
limited number of people,
usually about 20.
The turtle walks are
regulated by the State of
Florida Fish and Wildlife
Commission. Participants
in turtle walks cannot take
flash photography of the
nesting. No flashlights
are allowed. Guides use
red lights to lead the way.
Participants in the walks
need to be prepared to hike
a mile or more in soft sand.
TOUR TAKES HOURS
Groups assemble at dusk
for orientation. State park
groups meet at the Sebastian
Fishing Museum in the
park. STPS groups meet at
either Satellite Beach or
Melbourne Beach. Friends of
JOEL COHEN, SEA TURTLE PRESERVATION SOCIETY
A nesting turtle is photographed by a night vision camera.
FRED MAYS
The STPS is funded by memberships, donations and purchases from the gift
shop at their headquarters on A1A in Melbourne Beach. >>
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