License plate-funded ATVs, GPS units boost sea turtle protection in state parks

With sea turtle nesting season^[1] well underway, the Florida State Parks Foundation^[2] has some new conservation tools to bolster protection efforts at coastal parks across the state.

The Gainesville-based Sea Turtle Conservancy^[3], a longtime partner of the foundation, has given $33,000 from its Sea Turtle License Plate Grant Program^[4] for two all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) with trailers for Sebastian Inlet State Park^[5] near Vero Beach.

The funds also covered the cost of 10 Archer 4^[6] tracking units for use at Sebastian Inlet and nine other state parks: Dr. Julian G. Bruce St. George Island, Bald Point, Amelia Island, Anastasia, Lovers Key, Honeymoon Island, John D. MacArthur Beach Fort Pierce Inlet, Big Talbot and Little Talbot.

A Florida State Parks Foundation press note said the vehicles and devices will assist park staff in monitoring thousands of turtle nests, patrolling beaches, removing debris and collecting critical population data.

“We are so grateful for the Sea Turtle License Plate Grants Program’s commitment to Florida’s beloved sea turtles and the state parks that provide a safe haven for them,” Florida State Parks Foundation CEO Julia Gill Woodward said in a statement.

“These new resources will help maintain optimal nesting areas for sea turtles and support the dedicated staff who care for them every day.”

Florida’s 825 miles^[7] of sandy coastline are a vital nesting ground for several species of sea turtles, including loggerheads, green turtles and leatherbacks. All are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act^[8].

State law^[9] reinforces those protections, making it illegal to disturb nesting turtles, hatchlings or their nests. Park rangers, biologists and volunteers work to safeguard nests, track hatchling success rates and implement turtle-friendly lighting to reduce disorientation on beaches.

Each year, sea turtles lay more than 12,000 nests in 40 Florida state parks^[10]. Florida State Parks partners with several conservation and wildlife organizations, including the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, to track sea turtle populations, measure the success of conservation efforts and develop turtle-management policies.

The added ATVs are a valuable step forward for turtle conservation, the Florida State Parks Foundation said, noting that the rugged machines allow rangers to “efficiently patrol nesting sites, tend to stranded turtles, transport equipment, remove litter and debris and travel across miles of beachfronts.”

They join a fleet of similar utility terrain vehicles already funded by the Grants Program at parks such as Cayo Costa, Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson, Fort Pierce Inlet and John D. MacArthur Beach.

The handheld Archer 4 trackers, powered by global positioning system (GPS) software, enable rangers to collect and log large volumes of nesting activity data with precision. That information feeds state and national databases, which biologists use to assess population trends, identify threats and improve protection measures.

“Park rangers have a role in sea turtle conservation and management, and it’s great that the Grants Program is able to provide them with the tools they need to be successful,” said Daniel Evans, research biologist and administrator of the Sea Turtle License Plate Grants Program. “Providing grants to groups like the Florida State Parks Foundation helps create positive outcomes for Florida’s sea turtles.”

The license plate grants program has invested more than $100,000 in Florida State Parks since 2020 for conservation vehicles, turtle-friendly lighting, tracking tools and educational materials, the Florida State Parks Foundation said.

The program is funded by sales of specialty “Helping Sea Turtles Survive^[11]” license plates. Since its inception in the late 1990s, the Sea Turtle License Plate Grants Program has awarded more than $8 million to conservation projects, the program said on its website^[12].

There are seven species of sea turtles: loggerhead, green, leatherback, hawksbill, Kemp’s ridley, olive ridley and flatback. All are considered either endangered or threatened. They come ashore on Summer nights, digging pits in the sand and depositing dozens of eggs before covering them up and returning to the sea. Florida beaches are one of the most important hatcheries for loggerheads in the world.

Only about 1 in 1,000 sea turtle hatchlings live to adulthood. They face myriad natural threats, including predators on land and in the ocean, disruptions to nests and failure to make it to the water after hatching.

Turtles generally lay eggs in a three-year cycle, leading to up-and-down years of nests, Carla Oakley, a senior turtle conservation biologist at Clearwater Marine Aquarium, told The Associated Press in 2023.

“The nesting process is very exhausting and, in this break, females regain the energy to do the process again,” she said.

Climate change has added to those challenges, reducing beaches as sea levels rise and causing more powerful tropical storms. Hotter air, water and sand and changes in the ocean currents turtles use to migrate also lower the odds of surviving, according to international conservation group Oceana, an international conservation group.

“Park rangers work every day to provide a safe habitat for Florida’s native wildlife, especially our sea turtles,” Florida State Parks Director Chuck Hatcher said in a statement.

“We are thankful to have partners like the Sea Turtle License Plate Grants Program and the Florida State Parks Foundation supporting these efforts and are proud to have had record numbers^[13] of sea turtle nests on our beaches in recent years.”

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Material from The Associated Press was used in this report. Republished with permission.

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