Comment on green turtles
Public comment is welcome by Friday, Sept. 25 on a proposal by NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reclassify the green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) into 11 distinct population segments under the Endangered Species Act.
Green sea turtles occasionally nest on Anna Maria Island. The species is currently listed as threatened globally, with the exception of the Florida and Mexican Pacific coast breeding populations, which are listed as endangered.
The proposal would remove the current listings and instead list eight distinct population segments as threatened and three as endangered.
• Electronic Submissions: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.
1. Go to www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=NOAA-NMFS-2012-0154,
2. Click the “Comment Now!” icon, complete the required fields, and
3. Enter or attach your comments.
• Submit written comments to Green Turtle Proposed Listing Rule, Office of Protected Resources, National Marine Fisheries Service, 1315 East-West Highway, Room 13535, Silver Spring, MD 20910; or Green Turtle Proposed Listing Rule, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, North Florida Ecological Services Office, 7915 Baymeadows Way, Suite 200, Jacksonville, FL 32256.
Turtle Tips
Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring offers free Tuesday Turtle Talks each Tuesday at 10 a.m. at the Annie Silver Community Center, 103 23rd St. in Bradenton Beach.
No reservations are required for the program, which highlights 35 years of turtle and shorebird nesting history on Anna Maria Island.
Free souvenirs include temporary turtle tattoos and the Flippers and Feathers Activity book. Shirts and hats will be available for purchase.
Doors open at 9:30 a.m. so you can visit with the crew that monitors AMI shorelines every morning.
Turtle Tips
During sea turtle season, May 1 – Oct. 31, please follow these tips:
• Turn off lights visible from the beach and close blinds from sundown to sunrise; lights confuse nesting sea turtles and may cause them to go back to sea and drop their eggs in the water, where they won’t hatch. Light can also attract hatchlings away from the water.
• Don’t use flashlights or camera flashes on the beach at night.
• Remove all objects from the sand from sundown to sunrise; they can deter sea turtles from nesting and disorient hatchlings.
• Fill in the holes you dig in the sand before leaving the beach; they can trap nesting and hatching sea turtles, which cannot live long out of the water.
• Don’t use sky lanterns or fireworks; they litter the beach and Gulf.
• Do not trim trees and plants that shield the beach from lights.
• Never touch a sea turtle; it’s the law. If you see people disturbing turtles, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Wildlife Alert hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922).
Bird Tips
During bird nesting season, March through August, please follow these tips:
• Never touch a shorebird chick, even if it’s wandering outside a staked nesting area.
• Teach kids not to chase birds – bird parents may abandon nests if they’re disturbed.
• Don’t feed birds – it encourages them to fly at people aggressively and is not good for their health.
• If birds are screeching and flying at you, you’re too close.
• Avoid posted bird nesting areas and use designated walkways to the beach.
• Keep pets away from bird nesting areas.
• Keep the beach clean; food scraps attract predators such as raccoons and crows to the beach, and litter can entangle birds and other wildlife.
• If you see people disturbing nesting birds, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Wildlife Alert hotline a
