No turtle left unadopted
"Life is like an ocean. It can be calm and still, or rough and rigid, but in the end, it is always beautiful."
Sentiments like this commemorating both lost and living loved ones are popping up all over the beaches of Anna Maria Island as loggerhead sea turtles lay their nests and Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring volunteers stake them off and post them with adopt-a-nest plaques.
The program, a fundraiser for the not-for-profit organization, is so popular that Turtle Watch is accepting requests for nest adoptions on a waiting list for this summer, contingent on the cooperation of the turtles.
Besides serving as memorials, adoptions also are used to promote businesses and organizations.
The plaques remain on the nests for 60 days, approximately the length of time it takes a nest to hatch. After the nest has hatched, each adoptive parent receives the plaque as a keepsake, data from the nest, including how many turtles hatched from it and when, a letter of appreciation and the satisfaction of helping an imperiled species, according to Turtle Watch.
Adoptions are $100. For more information, visit www.islandturtlewatch.com.
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, light sticks, or cell phone 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).
Manatee Tips
• Obey posted signs for manatee slow-speed zones.
• Wear polarized sunglasses to see manatees in your path.
• If you observe a manatee mating herd - several manatees gathered as males vie to mate with a female - watch from at least 100 feet away. Coming any closer might disrupt the mating or endanger you; adult manatees typically weigh more than 1,000 pounds.
• Never feed or water manatees as they will become habituated to people, which could put them at risk of injury.
• Stow trash and line when underway. Marine debris that blows overboard can become ingested by or entangled around manatees.
• Report stranded or dead manatees to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) Wildlife Alert hotline at 1-888-404-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 at 888-404-FWCC (3922).
Dolphin Tips
DO
• Stay at least 50 yards away from dolphins when viewing from a vessel or watercraft.
• Limit time spent observing dolphins to 30 minutes or less.
• Avoid making loud or sudden noises near dolphins.
• Move away slowly if a dolphin's behavior indicates the animal is stressed or disturbed.
• Look Before You Book! Book wild dolphin viewing tours with businesses that responsibly view dolphins in the wild and help dolphin conservation. See Facebook "Don't Feed Wild Dolphins" and "Dolphin SMART."
• Put your vessel's engine in neutral if in the close vicinity of dolphins.
• Call for help if you hook a dolphin on a fishing line or see a stranded or injured dolphin - Mote Marine's Stranding Investigations Program, 941-988-0212.
DON'T
• Pursue, swim with, pet or touch wild dolphins, even if they approach you.
• Feed or attempt to feed wild dolphins.
• Encircle or entrap dolphins with vessels.
• Direct a vessel or accelerate toward dolphins with the intent of creating a pressure wake to bow or wake-ride.
• Separate mother/calf pairs.
• Drive watercraft through or over groups of dolphins.
