Vero Beach - Turtle Walk

[DVCinderella]

We're going to VB in early May. Are the turtles nesting at that time of year?

For those of you who have done the "Turtle Walk", do you only get to see the turtle nesting (laying and burying her eggs), or is there a chance you might see baby turtles hatching?

Also, since this happens at night, do the guides provide flashlights, or is that considered disruptive to nature?

 

[RobDoc]

Yes, you may get to experience the turtles in May. There won't be any hatching at that time however. You will have to sign up for the limited spaces in the Turtle Watch program, but are free to explore the beach on your own also.

You can also look for signs of the turtle's presence during the day and the evidence is very obvious. You can often find the naturalists marking the nests and feel free to ask them questions also- they are happy to share their experience.

Each nest will be marked with a small stake with the date of the nest and the expected date of hatching.

There are some beach restrictions involving the turtles and it is against the law to disturb both the turtles and the nests. It is a fascinating study though!

Enjoy!

 

[BobH]

The book I picked up stated that egg laying starts in April and goes on til about September. Eggs incubate about 60 days before hatching so you might hit it right and see some hatching. The problem is that it all goes on after dark. Guides carry flashlights with red lenses and it is against the federal endangered species act for other people to use flashlights. Lights on the beach houes are also regulated to be subdued. The problem is that the white lights confuse the mother turtles and the hatchlings. A flashlight will scare a mother off and prevent egg laying. When the baby turtles hatch lights from a road or house will cause the turtle to head in that direction and either die from exhaustion trying to find the water or they get hit by cars because they are attracted to roadside lights. Apparently there is an instinct in the turtles to find the water by going for the ocean because the water is lighter than the surrounding beach. Thus an even lighter object such as flashlights etc have been found to confuse the turtles. We tried the turtle walk and enjoyed it very much.

 

[BobH]

The only drawback is that there is a lottery for the turlte walk. You are not guaranteed to be able to go on one.