Nesting turtles once had no trouble finding a quiet, dark beach on which to nest, but now they must compete with tourists, businesses and coastal residents for use of sandy beaches. U.S. beaches, popular with humans and turtles alike, are now lined with seaside condominiums, houses and hotels. Lights from these developments discourage females from nesting. If a female fails to nest after multiple false crawls, she will resort to less-than-optimal nesting spots or deposit her eggs in the ocean. In either case, the survival outlook for hatchlings is slim.
Lighting near the shore also can cause hatchlings to become disoriented and wander inland, where they often die of dehydration or predation. Hatchlings, scientists believe, have an innate instinct that leads them in the brightest direction, which is normally moonlight reflecting off of the ocean. Excess lighting from the nearshore buildings and streets draw hatchlings toward land, where they may be eaten, run over, or drown swimming pools. In Florida alone, millions of hatchling sea turtles die this way every year.
Turtle friendly light fixtures are designed to keep light where it is needed — pointed downward. And turtle-friendly light sources limit the spectrum of light emitted to minimize the impact on turtles. When used correctly, these lights (also known as amber lights) provide proper illumination for human safety without negatively impacting sea turtle nesting or hatchlings’ ability to find the ocean.
Brevard County has a Lights Out ordinance effective May 1 – October 31 that requires all lights visible from the beach to be either covered, blocked, moved, or turned off from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. This includes flashlights, cellphones, and red lights.
About this cache:
This is a sneaky little micro! - Watch out for muggles!
This cache shouldn't require you to go on the dunes.
Stay off the dunes and CITO!