Sea turtles on our beaches

Nesting season

Sea turtle season runs May 1 to October 31. Loggerheads nest mostly May through August, and hatchlings come out from July on. Loggerhead, green and leatherback turtles nest on Florida beaches, with an occasional Kemp's ridley. Panama City Beach Turtle Watch, a volunteer group, tracks and marks nests on Panama City Beach.

Lights out

Hatchlings head for the brightest horizon, so beach-facing lights can lead them away from the water. Bay County and the city of Panama City Beach both have sea turtle lighting ordinances. After dark:

• Turn off lights you can see from the beach, and close the curtains.
• Don't use flashlights, phone lights or flash photos on the beach.
• Outside lights near the beach should be long, low and shielded.

FWC on turtles and lights.

On the sand

• Stay at least 50 feet from a nesting turtle, and never touch a turtle, nest, egg or hatchling. It's against state and federal law.
• Under the city's Leave No Trace ordinance, chairs, tents and anything else left on the sand overnight can be removed. Leave No Trace.

See a turtle in trouble?

Call the FWC Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922), or *FWC from a cell phone, if you see a sick, injured, entangled, stranded or dead turtle, or someone disturbing a nest. FWC sea turtles.

Learning more

Gulf World Marine Park in Panama City Beach is an FWC-permitted sea turtle rehabilitation facility. St. Andrews State Park has nesting beaches and posts its own turtle-season guidance.