The Anna Maria Island Sun Newspaper


Vol. 16 No. 30 - May 25, 2016

TURTLES

Turtle Talk Tuesdays begin in June

Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring volunteers will present a 30-minute program every Tuesday at 10 a.m. in June and July at CrossPointe Fellowship Church, 8605 Gulf Drive in Holmes Beach.

Using photos, videos and funny stories, volunteers will take you on a virtual tour of Anna Maria Island's nesting beaches and answer your questions.

Everyone will get the scoop on the time and location of upcoming nest excavations, which is done three days after hatchlings leave the nests, and can pick up free activity books, handouts and temporary turtle tattoos.

T-shirts, stickers, transfers and embroidered ball caps with Turtle Watch's new Turtle Life logo will be available for a donation.

For more information, visit www.islandturtlewatch.com.

Turtle Tips

Sunday, May 1 is the official start of sea turtle nesting season on Anna Maria Island, although the turtles sometimes begin nesting earlier.

For the next six months, imperiled female loggerhead and green sea turtles will be laying their eggs on the beaches at night, and their hatchlings will be making their way to the Gulf of Mexico.

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, light sticks, lanterns or camera or cell phone flashes on the beach at night.

• Remove all objects from the sand from sundown to sunrise, including chairs, boats, umbrellas, umbrella anchors and tents; 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.

• Correctly dispose of fishing line, so it won't entangle sea turtles and other animals.

• Stay clear of sea turtles and never touch them; it's the law. If you see people disturbing turtles, or see a sick, injured, entangled or dead sea turtle, call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's Wildlife Alert hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922).

Nesting news

Sea turtles

Nests laid: 0

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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