Sea Turtles

Sea Turtle Sightings

Know the DO’S AND DON’TS

when you spot a sea turtle on the beach

BY BARB VAN STAVERN AND KATIE GARRISON

Asea turtle sighting on the beach can be exciting. It’s a rare experience and offers a story to share, a souvenir-memory from your beach trip. But there are many dangers to sea turtles on the shore, and humans can be one of those dangers, whether we realize it or not.

Organizations like the South Walton Turtle Watch Group, LLC. (SWTWG), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, made up primarily of volunteers and a few paid staff, works to protect these special sea creatures and educate communities on how we can help to protect them as well.

SWTWG is one of several organizations along the Emerald Coast that hold marine-turtle permits in order to conduct sea turtle nesting surveys and stranding activities. And their mission is to protect and preserve sea turtles and their nesting habitats, as well as to provide educational opportunities during nesting season to the local community and beach visitors. SWTWG’s goal is to also shed light on the importance of sea turtles and how, as a community, we can come together to protect and respect their beauty.

Sea Turtle Protection

All species of sea turtles are protected under the Endangered Species Act, due to declining populations resulting from a loss of nesting habitats, feeding grounds, fishing gear entanglement, vessel strikes and poaching. Sea turtles are a keystone species and can indicate the overall health of our oceans and beach ecosystems. Only authorized, permitted agencies or personnel can interact with and handle sea turtles, their nests and hatchlings.

Emerald Coast Turtles

Sea turtle nesting season in the panhandle runs from May 1 through October 31, which is when you’ll most often spot them on the beach. Sea turtles that nest on Florida’s Emerald Coast beaches include the Loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and the Green (Chelonia mydas), as well as the occasional presence of Leatherbacks (Dermochelys coriacea) and, sometimes, a rare Kemp’s Ridley (Lepidochelys kempii) will nest on Panhandle beaches.

SWTWG Efforts

SWTWG holds a marine-turtle permit (MTP-120), issued by Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) for Walton County. Staff and volunteers conduct daily surveys throughout the nesting season. As trained participants of the Florida Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network, SWTWG also responds to sick or injured sea turtles that get stranded on the beach and collect data, measurements and samples for permitted research

Trained volunteers excavate a sea turtle nest after hatchlings leave.

WHERE & WHAT TO REPORT

> Call SWTWG’s Sea Turtle/Stranding Hotline at (850) 865-4503 to report sightings of injured, sick or stranded turtles in Walton County. > Call Walton County Sheriff’s Office at (850) 892-8111 to report suspected turtle harassment or nest vandalism. > Dial *FWC or #FWC from your cell phone to report suspected turtle harassment, nest vandalism or a stranded marine animal on the beach.

New hatchlings make their way to the Gulf in the small hours.

Sea turtle nest

WHAT IS #CLEANDARKFLAT?

As community members and tourists of our area come together to enjoy our beautiful beaches, we all must work together to protect our turtles. Please, follow the “clean, dark, flat” rule explained below.

CLEAN: Remove all belongings, furniture, umbrellas, toys, chairs, trash, etc., from the beach at the end of the day so nesting turtles and tiny hatchlings have a safe journey to the water and don’t become entangled or trapped. Other wildlife can also be harmed by debris or items left by humans. Trash is often mistaken for food by various wildlife and can be harmful.

DARK: Keep the beaches dark. Sea turtles usually nest at night. Artificial lights are disturbing and can draw sea turtles away from the water, disorienting them. They can dehydrate and/or become prey very quickly, become trapped in swimming pools or get run over by vehicles. Turn off flashlights, cell phone lights, all beachfront lights and close shades and blinds. Never shine lights on sea turtles. Use red or amber lights if you’re out on the beach at night. Follow all lighting ordinances created to protect local wildlife.

FLAT: Fill in all holes before you leave the beach and knock down sand castles so turtles have a flat beach to nest on. Sea turtles, baby chicks and people can fall in and suffer serious injury or suffocation. Emergency response vehicles also need a safe passageway on our beaches.

NEVER pick up or handle turtles or push them or other marine animals back into the water. Never try to remove entanglement gear from a turtle or marine animal; doing so can cause more harm and/or prolong suffering. Before taking any action, call local, permitted agencies who have proper training and permits to respond to them, or call local law enforcement or FWC. projects. Rescues of stranded, sick or injured turtles are taken to permitted local facilities for rehabilitation under authorization by FWC.

Permitted surveyors and staff are trained by FWC to locate and identify sea turtle crawls, tracks, species, nests and false crawls. Each species of sea turtle leaves a distinctive crawl in the sand when they emerge to nest. Characteristics in the crawls help the trained surveyors identify the species that made it. Nests are staked off and monitored during the incubation period and will be excavated and inventoried. Inventory data and, sometimes, samples are collected for research purposes under special permits, and submitted to FWC, Walton County and permitted researchers or agencies.

The Nesting Process

Nesting females will create a body pit in the sand, dig an egg chamber with their back flippers, then deposit eggs. They will then cover the nest with sand to camouflage it before returning to the water. It’s important to not disturb her during this time so that she completes the entire nesting process. Sea turtles nest multiple times per season at approximately two-week intervals, taking off one to three seasons before returning to nest again. Sex is determined during the incubation period by sand temperatures, with cooler temps resulting in males and warmer temps resulting in females. At around 25 to 30 years, when they reach sexual maturity, females will return to their natal beaches where they were born to nest. It is estimated that only 1 in 1,000 or more turtles will survive to adulthood.

BARB VAN STAVERN is SWTWG’s public relations and area coordinator. In her seventh season with SWTWG, she manages a team of volunteers spanning their watch from Grayton Beach to Watersound Beach Club.