Sea Turtles

Residents and visitors can help protect vulnerable nesting sea turtles this spring and summer while visiting Florida’s coastal habitats.

The Kemp's ridley sea turtles were released back into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Canaveral after two months of rehabilitation.

A balloon ban bill is floating its way through the Florida capital.

The record-setting start to 2023’s nesting season was real, but extreme weather events linked to climate change ending in a sad and bleak reproductive cycle.

Seven Ridley’s sea turtles are among 13 given holiday-themed names as they are treated at Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach. They were among 52 flown to Tampa last week from the New England Aquarium in Massachusetts.

Fifty-two endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles suffering from “cold stun” are rehabbing at four facilities in Florida after a flight on a private jet from the New England Aquarium in Massachusetts.

Despite the large numbers, biologists say turtles face threats from such factors as reduced beaches as sea levels rise, and and more powerful tropical storms.

More than 1,000 loggerhead nests were counted on Sanibel and Captiva islands. Research shows Sanibel is averaging about five times more loggerhead nests compared to the 1970s and ‘80s.

The turtles were brought to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium over the past few months.

A decade after swimming nonstop for more than two straight days from Cuba to Florida, Diana Nyad returned to the Key West beach where she completed her epic journey, helping return a rehabilitated sea turtle to the Atlantic.

It's an effort to protect sea turtles, which are an endangered species found year-round in Southwest Florida waters and become especially vulnerable during nesting season.

“It’s amazing how a few degrees makes such a huge difference.”