The seasonal wildlife monitoring teams on Sanibel and Captiva Islands are reporting an exceptionally busy start to the summer. The Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF) announced that as of June 3, 2026, its sea turtle team had officially documented a total of 340 loggerhead nests and two green sea turtle nests across our local shores.
At the LeAneSuarezGroup, we are incredibly proud to support our island’s dedicated conservationists. Tracking these nesting metrics is crucial for evaluating the health of our coastal ecosystem, which directly shapes the beautiful natural environment that property owners cherish here in Southwest Florida.
In a nutshell: Sea turtle nesting counts are significantly outperforming last year’s baseline, with 342 total nests documented so far. However, local conservationists are actively working to protect these clutches from a sharp increase in coyote depredations and recent high-tide washouts.
The 2026 Environmental Data: Progress and Natural Pressures
The current count of 340 loggerhead nests marks a noticeable upward trend compared to the 264 loggerhead nests recorded by the exact same date in 2025. Green sea turtle nest counts have remained perfectly steady year-over-year at two nests.
Despite the encouraging surge in nesting activity, local conservation teams are facing heightened environmental and predatory challenges this summer. High tides recently caused 19 nest washouts, a steep spike from the single washout recorded by this date last year. Additionally, local wildlife teams are implementing extra protective measures to combat an increase in coyote activity.
SANIBEL & CAPTIVA NESTING PARAMETERS (AS OF JUNE 3)
[ TOTAL NESTS TO DATE ] ──► 2025: 266 Nests │ 2026: 342 Nests
[ COYOTE DEPREDATIONS ] ──► 2025: 38 Nests │ 2026: 53 Nests
[ HIGH-TIDE WASHOUTS ] ──► 2025: 1 Nest │ 2026: 19 Nests
A Detailed Look at Local Nesting Impact Metrics:
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Sanibel Island Metrics: Sanibel remains the primary hub for nesting activity but has also absorbed the highest share of environmental pressures. To date, Sanibel has recorded 15 washouts (up from 1 last year) and 39 coyote depredations (up from 30 last year).
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Captiva Island Metrics: Captiva’s narrower shorelines have also experienced an uptick in activity and challenges. The island has documented 4 washouts (up from 0 last year) and 14 coyote depredations (up from 8 last year).
Meet “Lila”: First Satellite-Tagged Loggerhead of the Season
In a major milestone for regional marine research, the SCCF team successfully encountered and satellite-tagged their first adult female loggerhead of the summer. Spotted nesting on the quiet west end of Sanibel during the early morning hours of May 19, the nesting mother showed absolutely no signs of prior PIT or flipper tags, confirming this was her first formal research encounter on the island.
The research team affectionately named the turtle Lila, whose satellite tag was generously sponsored by local supporter Norman Robertson. Lila’s transmitter is officially live on the interactive SCCF Sea Turtle Tracking Portal, an initiative that successfully tracked five nesting loggerheads after launching last season.
THE IMPORTANCE OF SATELLITE TAGGING
[ SHORELINE TRACKING ] ──► Access is easy on beaches, but only captures nesting habits.
[ OCEANIC TRACKING ] ──► Satellite tags map location data while turtles are at sea.
“A lot of the research on sea turtles is conducted while they’re nesting because they’re much easier to access on beaches, but since they spend most of their lives at sea, there is still so much we don’t know. Satellite tags provide location data for the turtles even when they aren’t observed again on the nesting beach, which allows us to track their movements at sea.” — Kelly Sloan, SCCF Coastal Wildlife Director
You can follow Lila’s deep-sea journeys yourself by visiting the live SCCF Hammerhead Sea Turtle Tracking Portal. Let’s keep our beaches dark, flat, and clear to ensure our record-breaking numbers turn into a highly successful hatching season!
