The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper


Vol. 16 No. 1 - November 4, 2015

TURTLES

Turtle ‘terrorist’ case closed, unsolved

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has closed the unsolved case of who ran over and killed three black skimmer chicks, a state species of special concern, and ran over five nests, each holding up to 100 eggs of loggerhead sea turtles, a federally threatened species.
The investigation was closed because of insufficient evidence to bring charges against the unidentified person of interest in the case, FWC spokesman Gary Morse said, adding that the state attorney’s office declined to prosecute the case.

Witnesses to the June 27 incident described a laughing couple in their late 20s in a two- or three-wheeled vehicle with a single headlight around 10:30 p.m. near the Holmes Beach/Bradenton Beach line, aiming at yellow-staked turtle nests and driving over them, running over three flightless baby birds in the process.

The crimes are violations of the U.S. Endangered Species Act and the U.S. Migratory Bird Treaty Act, ranging from a first-degree misdemeanor to a third-degree felony, carrying penalties of $500 to $1,500 in fines with jail time of 60 days to five years.

Local law prohibits vehicles on the beach, with exceptions including Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring, law enforcement, lifeguards and beach renourishment and maintenance crews.

Suzi Fox, director of Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring, said last week that she had not been notified that the case had been dropped. At the time of the incident, she called for better police staffing, citing Anna Maria Island’s increasing popularity.

Immediately after the incident, investigators tracked the vehicle’s tire marks south to where it left the beach and drove onto Gulf Drive, searching unsuccessfully for signs of the vehicle.

Several security cameras in Bradenton Beach along the route marked in the sand by the tire tracks were not aimed at the beach at that time or were not working, according to a Sun investigation, but a videotape recorded at the Wicked Taco Cantina that night showed something that the general manager thought looked like two people on an ATV recorded around the time of the incident. However, Bradenton Beach police Detective Sgt. Leonard Diaz said the recording was so indistinct it was useless.

The eggs in the nests did not hatch, but the cause may not have been the vandalism, Fox said. The beach was flooded for several days between the time of the incident and the expected hatching dates, and being underwater can suffocate turtle eggs. Two of the nests were washed out to sea unhatched and three were inundated with water.

Season’s end

Saturday, Oct. 31 marks the official end of sea turtle nesting season, however, three turtle nests that were laid late in the season remain unhatched in Anna Maria.

Fox said that some beachfront property owners already had turned their lights back on last week, before the law allows, and is working with code enforcement officers in the Island’s three cities to enforce compliance.

She requests that people voluntarily observe turtle lighting restrictions into November due to the late nests, including turning off lights visible from the beach, closing blinds from sundown to sunrise and not using flashlights and camera flashes on the beach.

Only about half of this year’s 356 turtle nests hatched, with more than 12,500 hatchlings making it to the Gulf of Mexico, about 6,000 less than last year, but about 3,000 more than the 15-year average, according to Turtle Watch statistics.

 

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

Nesting news

Sea turtles

Nests laid: 356

False crawls: 441

Nests hatched: 178

Hatchlings to Gulf: 12,571

Overwashed (nests that had water over them): 88

Standing water (nests that were inundated with standing water): 50

Partial washout (some eggs, but not all, missing from nests): 14

Complete washout (nest and all eggs washed away or all stakes identifying nest location washed away): 53

Nest disorientations: 22

Not hatched: 176

Nests remaining: 2

Source: Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring

Adopt a turtle nest

Loggerhead sea turtle nests are up for adoption on Anna Maria Island beaches, to commemorate weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, lost loved ones or just for the love of nature. The 11-year-old program raises funds for Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring. For a tax deductible donation of $100, adoptive parents receive the adoption plaque that was posted on the nest, a video of the nest, data from the nest, such as how many turtles hatched and when, and a letter of appreciation. To adopt, visit www.islandturtlewatch.com.

 

 

 

 


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