More than 60 leatherback turtles have laid nests on Treasure Coast beaches
April 19th, 2010 by TCPalm.comWith a slow progressive shove of muscular flippers, the annual sea turtle beach nesting season has begun on the Treasure Coast.
Since March 14, more than 60 leatherback turtles have already crawled up onto the beaches and laid nests, according to private and public survey companies checking the beaches.
But it is too early to tell if nesting will be up or down this year, or if the January cold wave — that cold-stunned several hundred sea turtles along the Treasure Coast — will have any affect.
The nests are the first of an annual months-long onslaught, by a variety of sea turtles, that last year resulted in the laying of 16,060 nests in the three counties: 7,985 in Martin, 4,383 in St. Lucie and 3,692 in Indian River, state records show.
Because turtles may come onto beaches twice before nesting — usually at night — adult turtles may emerge from the ocean more than 32,000 times in a season on the Treasure Coast’s 60 miles of beaches, according to officials.
“It is amazing,” said Erik Martin, with Ecological Associates of Jensen Beach. The company helps with local sea turtle surveys.
Martin said the local beaches are an important refuge for sea turtles, which are on the federal government’s endangered and threatened species listing.
“I am not sure people know how important our beaches are to sea turtle nesting and preservation of the species,” Martin said.
Nesting numbers on the Treasure Coast alternate between highs and lows about every two years.
This year “looks like a typical (low) year,” said Rick Herren, Indian River County’s sea turtle nesting survey director.
Leatherback turtles usually nest here. They can weigh more than 500 pounds and are the rarest and largest of types of sea turtles. In 2009, the Treasure Coast accounted for 959 — 55 percent — of the 1,746 leatherback nests laid on Florida’s east coast.
In high years, leatherback nesting can start at early as March 1. This year’s first was recorded March 14 on Jupiter Island.
They are followed by the far more numerous loggerhead turtle nesting that starts in late April or early May. Then in June, green sea turtles begin nesting that can last into October, he said.
To safeguard the government-protected animals, surveys are routinely done to locate and monitor the nests.
In northern Indian River County, one sea turtle nest has been relocated because of the county’s on-going beach renourishment project. That is to end at the end of April due to the turtle season.
Elliott Jones
Tags: leatherback turtles, nests, sea turtles
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April 23rd, 2010 at 5:15 am
Palm Beach town (1990 pop. 9,814), Palm Beach co., SE Fla., on a barrier beach between the Atlantic Ocean and Lake Worth (a lagoon); inc. 1911. It is a well-known resort of the wealthy, with many fine estates, luxurious hotels, and yachting facilities. In the winter its population expands to much larger numbers. The town was settled during the 1870s, but not until the arrival (1893) of developer Henry M. Flagler in Florida did Palm Beach grow rapidly. Of interest are the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum, the Cluett Memorial Gardens, and the Four Arts Gardens.
May 14th, 2010 at 2:35 am
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June 16th, 2010 at 2:08 am
Cruise is a leisurely word that may involve crossing an ocean. Cruise actually comes from the Dutch word for “cross.” Originally cruise was for nautical journeys only, whether for pleasure or defense, always without a destination. Most cruise ships today do have a destination, or several. The noun cruiser is a bit different. It’s often been a warship. Slightly smaller ones were called cruiser warships.
June 16th, 2010 at 7:50 am
In the winter its population expands to much larger numbers. The town was settled during the 1870s, but not until the arrival (1893) of developer Henry M. Flagler in Florida did Palm Beach grow rapidly. Of interest are the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum, the Cluett Memorial Gardens, and the Four Arts Gardens.