Sea turtle nesting season runs from about May 1st, to about October 31st. During this time a number of different sea turtle species come ashore across southwest Florida’s beaches to lay their eggs, before heading back out to sea.
These days, throughout nesting season, there is a small army of dedicated volunteers from Turtle Time who walk the beaches, keeping an eye out for new nests, which will be clearly marked in order to keep people away from them until the eggs hatch. Established in 1989, Turtle Time is the Florida state-permitted monitoring organization for sea turtle activity from Fort Myers Beach to the Lee-Collier County line. Daily patrols during the nesting season are conducted to gather important scientific data about population estimates, distribution of nests, nesting patterns and hatching success rates. The information they collect is transmitted to a national sea turtle stranding network. We’re going to get an update on the just-finished nesting season from Mary Rose Spalletta, she’s a Permit Holder with Turtle Time.
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