As of May 18, sea turtle nesting activity had started to pick up with a total of 62 loggerhead nests on the islands’ beaches, the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation reported. Staff and volunteers have been working each morning to survey the beaches of Sanibel and Captiva for signs in the sand of sea turtles that have come ashore.
Four teams monitor different stretches of beach every morning at dawn, collecting data from turtle nests and false crawls. If it is determined that the area is a nesting site, it is then marked off with yellow stakes, a screen to discourage predation and informative signage.
Volunteers Gwenda Hiett-Clements and Nancy Riley, who is a designated east end permittee, marked the first nest on the east end of Sanibel on May 4. As permittee, Riley documents crawls and nests reported by walkers on the east end, from Tarpon Bay Road Beach to the Sanibel Lighthouse.
As of May 18, Sanibel and Captiva had collectively logged 62 loggerhead sea turtle nests, compared to 76 reported nests on the same date last year. Forty-four had been laid on the west end of Sanibel, seven on the east end of Sanibel, and 11 on Captiva.
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