Our Florida Sea Turtles

Our Sea Turtles

a picture of a loggerhead turtle in its natural environment

The loggerhead turtle is Florida’s most common sea turtle.  Englewood beaches were designated Critical Habitat for the threatened loggerhead sea turtles in July 2014. The Loggerhead was designated “endangered” by the Federal Government in 1978.

In south Florida, loggerhead turtle nesting season usually runs from May through October.  In 2019, the turtles started nesting in April and many more nests than usual have been spotted.  Could this be due to warming gulf water temperatures?

Importance of Volunteers

Approximately 3000 volunteers monitor Florida’s 800 miles of sandy nesting beaches.  Each morning, these volunteers:

  • walk the beaches looking for turtle tracks in the sand
  • mark any nests
  • record data on each nest
  • share information with beachgoers about how to protect the turtles’ journey, including rules about never touching or feeding a sea turtle

Facts

a picture of a loggerhead turtle swimming in the gulf of mexico

Scientists tell us that sea turtles have been on earth for millions of years. 

  • Loggerheads are named for their large block-like heads with powerful jaw muscles that enable them to eat hard-shelled prey, such as clams and sea urchins. 
  • Full-grown Loggerhead turtles weigh between 175 – 412 pounds and are 33 – 48 inches long.
  • They can live up to 50 years.
  • The shells of the adult Loggerheads are reddish-brown on top and creamy yellow underneath.
  • Each flipper has 2 claws.
  • Adult males have longer tails than females.
  • They live in the ocean and help maintain the health of coral reefs and sea grass beds, which provide homes for many species of fish, shellfish and crustaceans.  

Offspring

Laying Eggs

Female turtles return to their nesting beach approximately every 2 years and lay 4 to 7 nests, 1 about every 14 days.  They come up onto the beach at night and use their hind flippers to dig a hole about 18 inches deep for their nests.  They drop an average of 100 ping pong ball-sized eggs in the hole and cover them up with sand.  They then return to the ocean, leaving the baby turtles on their own.

The Hatchlings

After a minimum of 7 weeks, depending on the temperature of the sand, the loggerhead hatchlings emerge from their nest in a large group, a process known as a boil.  The hatchlings:

  • Are less than 2 inches long,
  • Weigh approximately one ounce,
  • have shells that are gray or brown on top and yellow underneath,
  • have flippers that are dark brown with white edges.

As soon as they emerge, the hatchlings make their way across the sand towards the horizon to the ocean.

Sometimes, scientists put identifying tags on turtles, which they use to track their movements.  Once loggerhead hatchlings reach the Gulf, these slow-swimmers embark on a multi-thousand-mile journey.  It seems they use the earth’s magnetic fields to guide them.  Often they end up in feeding grounds in the Azores or the Mediterranean, more than 3,000 miles away.  The turtles that survive this journey will return to the beaches of their birth 6 to 12 years later.

How You Can Help

turtle story If you visit or live near sea turtle nesting grounds, you can help sea turtles survive.

  • Fill in any holes on the beach that a turtle might fall in to.
  • Remove trash and potential obstacles, such as beach chairs and toys.
  • Keep beaches dark at night so turtles do not head the wrong way when they are seeking the ocean.

Sources