Heads up, lights down! Sea turtle season is almost here and it’s time to Share the Beach.
Beach visitors can be the sea turtles’ biggest ally in the nesting and hatching process, and most of that involves staying out of their way. Under the new Leave Only Footprints rules adopted by Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, visitors must remove beach tents, canopies, chairs, toys and other accessories by one hour after sunset each day.
Keeping the turtles’ path clear as they cross the sand to build nests is most important. Also essential is filling holes dug on the beach and removing fishing lines, either of which could trap or injure sea turtles that return to the beaches to lay their eggs.
The biggest threat to sea turtles, however, is artificial lighting, according to Mike Reynolds, turtle czar for Share the Beach. “The light disorients the nesting mama sea turtles. Then when the eggs hatch, the light attracts the baby sea turtles away from the water to their eventual death,” he said.
Patio lights should be turned off and inside lights that shine onto the beach should be shielded. Avoid using flashlights or flash photography on the beach at night.
Here are a few other suggestions from Share the Beach:
- Do not disturb sea turtle nests.
- Leave sea turtle tracks undisturbed.
- Do not leave trash on the beach.
- Volunteer and participate in the Adopt-A-Nest program.
In 2015, the efforts of Share the Beach resulted in 7,800 hatchlings making their way back to the Gulf of Mexico from Dauphin Island to Fort Morgan and Gulf Shores to Orange Beach. It’s a good start, but hatchlings face an upstream battle trying to fend off predators on land and sea until they are large enough not to be swallowed whole. Only one in 1,000 hatchlings will make it to adulthood, Reynolds said.
For more information on how you can Share the Beach, please visit www.alabamaseaturtles.org. More information about Leave Only Footprints can be obtained at www.cleanisland.org.
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