ANNA MARIA ISLAND – The official May 1 start to sea turtle nesting season was celebrated at Coquina Beach Café in Bradenton Beach with educational materials and displays provided by Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring volunteers.
The annual educational event is named “Suzi Fox Day” in honor of the late Turtle Watch executive director Suzi Fox, who passed away in 2022.
Turtle-friendly PAR20 amber LED light bulbs were available in exchange for a donation. Local musicians Scott Blum and Bill Vinhage provided the live music.
Beach patrols to monitor nesting activity have begun, but so far, there have been no signs of nesting sea turtles on Anna Maria Island beaches.
“We’ve been out every morning since April 15,” Turtle Watch Executive Director Kristen Mazzarella said.
“We’re doing a lot of preparation and getting out to all the contacted most of the property managers and they can order educational materials on our website and then inviting them to come here and pick up educational materials,” she said.
“We’re trying to do more with our educational outreach, and doing a lot more over the winter,” Mazzarella said. “In the summer, we’re trying to get more materials about shorebirds so we can also educate people about shorebirds.”
She said the volunteers are watching a group of black skimmers in Bradenton Beach that may possibly become a nesting site.
Mazzarella said Turtle Watch is already planning ahead for a beach renourishment project scheduled to take place at Coquina Beach this summer.
“The turtles will be nesting,” she said. “We’re getting ready to start relocating for the beach renourishment project. Once we have a meeting and know what kind of equipment is going to be used, we’ll know more.”
Sea turtle nesting tips
During sea turtle season, May 1 to Oct. 31, follow these tips to help nesting sea turtles:
- 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, lanterns or camera flashes on the beach at night.
- Remove all beach chairs and other 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.
To report large holes or other turtle obstacles call Anna Maria code enforcement (941-708-6130, ext. 111, Bradenton Beach code enforcement (941-778-1005, ext. 280) or Holmes Beach code enforcement 941-778-0331, ext. 2600).
- Level sandcastles before leaving the beach; they can block hatchlings from the water.
- Don’t use balloons, wish lanterns or fireworks; they litter the beach and Gulf and turtles can ingest the debris.
- 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).
The AMI Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring website can be found at IslandTurtleWatch.com.
In March, Turtle Watch Executive Director Kristen Mazzarella shared this highly informative sea turtle presentation with the Clean Water Ad Hoc Committee in Holmes Beach.
