SEA TURTLE NESTING SEASON

IS MAY 1 THROUGH OCTOBER 31, 2007

    Each summer, Florida beaches host the largest gathering of nesting sea turtles in the United States.  Female sea turtles emerge from the surf to deposit eggs in sand nests and 50-65 days later, tiny hatchlings struggle from their nests and immediately scramble toward the ocean.  Moving quickly from the nest to the sea is critical for the survival of hatchling sea turtles.  Nearly all of this activity takes place under cover of darkness and relies upon a naturally lit beach, where the lighter seaward horizon guides the hatchlings to the ocean.  On beaches where artificial lighting is visible, the hatchlings’ journey to the sea is disrupted.  Hatchling sea turtles emerging from nests are strongly attracted to light sources along the beach.  Consequently, artificial lighting visible on a beach causes the hatchlings to move away from the ocean in the wrong direction toward porch lights, interior lighting visible through windows, parking lot lighting, walkway lighting, and street lights.  Lost and disoriented, they soon die from dehydration, heat exhaustion or are crushed on nearby streets or parking lots.  Quite literally, a single light left on near a sea turtle nesting beach can misdirect and kill hundreds of hatchlings. 

Artificial lighting also affects the nesting of female sea turtles.  Studies show that brightly lighted beaches are less frequently used as nesting sites.  Adult female sea turtles attempting to return to the sea after nesting, like hatchlings, can also be lead astray by nearby lighting.

Please make sure that your outside and inside lights are not visible from the beach.  In addition, please remember to bring all beach furniture, toys, etc., up close to your house or condominium building each night.

 
       For more information about sea turtles, call Turtle Time, Inc. at (239) 481-5566 or www.turtletime.org; or click on the Environmental Sciences link on this website.  For artificial lighting information, call Sea Turtle Code Enforcement at (239) 479-8353.

Sea turtles are protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act as well as Florida Statutes.   The Fort Myers Beach Land Development Code (LDC) contains sea turtle protection provisions governing the following development, activities and equipment.

·        Electric signs and signs near the beach – LDC Sec. 30.93 (c)(2); and Sec. 30.55 (b)(2)(c)

·        Parking lot lighting – LDC Sec. 34-2015 (4)

·        New and existing development – LDC Sec. 14-75 &  14-76

·        Beach furniture and equipment – Sec. 14-78 (3)

·        Jet-ski transport – Sec. 14-78 (4)

·        Mechanical beach raking – Sec. 14-78 (2)

·        Parking – Section 14-78 (c)

Land Development Code guidelines for mitigation and abatement of prohibited artificial lighting can be found in the LDC Sec. 14-79.

Solutions to Decrease Light-Pollution Affecting Sea Turtles – HOW YOU CAN HELP

There are ways that beach front property owners can modify their lights to prevent them from being seen from the beach. The following is a list of suggestions (these solutions may need to be used in combination with one another in order to prevent sea turtle disorientation).

• Turn off unnecessary lights. Don’t use decorative lighting (such as runner lights or uplighting of vegetation) in areas that are visible from the beach and permanently remove, disable, or turn off fixtures that cannot be modified in any other way.

• For lights that can be repositioned, face them away from the beach so that the light source is no longer visible.

• Shield the light source. Materials such as aluminum flashing can be used as a shield to direct light and keep it off the beach. When shielding lights, it is important to make sure they are shielded from all areas on the beach (including from either side and on top), and not just from the beach directly in front of the light. Black oven paint may be used as a temporary solution.

• Light sockets with an exposed light source (such as plain bulbs) should be replaced with fixtures that are specially made to recess and/or the light source should be shielded.

• Replace fixtures that scatter light in all directions (such as globe lights or carriage lights) with directional fixtures that point down and away from the beach.

• Replace lights on poles with low profile, low-level lamps so that the light source and reflected light are not visible from the beach.

• Replace incandescent, fluorescent, and high intensity lighting with the lowest wattage low-pressure sodium vapor lighting or replace white incandescent bulbs with the yellow "bug" light variety of 40 watts or less.

• Plant or improve vegetation buffers (such as sea grapes and other native beach vegetation) between the light source and the beach to screen light from the beach.

• Use shielded motion detector lights for lighting, and set them on the shortest time setting.

• To reduce spillover from indoor lighting move light fixtures away from windows, apply window tint to your windows that meets the 45% inside to outside transmittance standards for tinted glass (you’ll save on air conditioning costs too!), or use window treatments (blinds, curtains) to shield interior lights from the beach.

Remember the three ‘golden rules’ for avoiding artificial lighting effects on the beach:

• Keep it Low - keep lights at a low level/height (directed lighting) and use low wattage lighting.
  
  
• Keep it Shielded – use lighting fixture shields

• Keep it Long – use long wavelength lighting such as low pressure sodium bollard fixtures, LED lighting, light bulbs in a deep red or amber color. 

HELPFUL CONTACTS AND PHONE NUMBERS:

• The Town Hall at Fort Myers Beach has applications available for free temporary lighting shields from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.  Town Hall is open Monday through Friday, from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM.
  
  
• For assistance or additional lighting information, please contact Sea Turtle Code Enforcement at (239) 479-8353.
  
  
• Visit the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission website to view approved wildlife lighting for sea turtle protection at http://myfwc.com/seaturtle/WildlifeLighting/index.htm.
  
  
• To report dead, injured or stranded sea turtles and hatchlings, please contact Turtle Time, Inc. at (239) 481-5566 or www.turtletime.org.  A second contact number is the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission at 1-888-404-FWCC.
  
  
• For assistance or questions on helping your local population of sea turtles during nesting season, please contact Turtle Time, Inc., a local non-profit organization dedicated to sea turtle preservation on Fort Myers Beach, at (239) 481-5566.