Keeping Marco’s Beach Dark

The May Nightly Beach Reports show notable challenges for nesting sea turtles. Keeping the beach dark and clearing the beach of manmade moveable objects are top of the list. Manmade moveable objects on the beach past 9:00 PM can obstruct nesting sea turtles coming ashore to nest.  

For the past 24 nights in May, 28manmademovable objects were reported on the beach after 9:00 PM. The officers on night patrol advised the subjects of the city ordinance and the objects were removed immediately for compliance.The officers reported kayaks, skim boards, chairs, towels, buckets, coolers, wagons, and tables. Officers also encountered abandoned equipmentand these are taken off the beach. All these items can obstruct nesting turtles and pose risks to hatchlings.   

Sea Turtles Like it Dark!According to the Sea Turtle Conservancy, nesting sea turtles used to have no trouble finding a quiet, dark beach on which to nest. But now, they encounter individuals on the beach at night using cell phones and flashlights, and beachfront properties are glowing with bright white lights, which can cause a sea turtle to disorient or crawl in circles on the beach and abandon nesting and go back to the water. 

The beach ismonitored each night to ensure compliance with Marco’s sea turtle lighting ordinance. The month of May is not quite over, but already the Nightly Beach Report has taken photos of buildingspast 9:00 PM that are not in compliance with the Sea Turtle Lighting Ordinanceand forwarded them to Code Enforcement for follow-up. The nightly reports recorded 41 building light violations. 

Under Marco’s Sea Turtle Lighting Ordinance, “after one warning in a calendar year, excluding an irreparable event (a sea turtle or hatching dies), the following shall apply:” 

Pedestrian lightis another category on the Nightly Beach Report. Sources come from individuals on the beach using cell phonelights and flashlights past 9:00 PM. According to the Nightly Beach Report, for the past 24 nights of May, 66 pedestrian lights werereported. The officer on duty would note on the report the number of individualswalking on the beach at night past 9:00 PM using cell phone lights or flashlights and the subjects were advised of the applicable City Code and the violations were immediately corrected.” 

Helpful Tips to Keep Sea Turtles from Disorientation