Conservation group: Nesting sea turtle killed in car crash on Anna Maria Island

A female loggerhead turtle was hit by a car and died on Wednesday, the Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring group said in a social media post.

The environmental group said streetlights on Gulf Drive illuminating a crosswalk caused the nesting sea turtle to become disoriented.

According to the group’s Facebook post, after nesting, sea turtles use light to navigate their way back to the water, moving away from dark shadows and toward the brightest horizon – often the light of the night sky above the water.

Disorientation occurs when sea turtles head toward artificial light instead. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will take the female loggerhead turtle for a necropsy, or autopsy.

“The good news is that she laid eggs before heading to the road, so her legacy lives on,” Kristen Mazzarella, executive director of Anna Maria Island Turtle Watch and Shorebird Monitoring, said in the post.

The group said there was a risk of disorientation at the turtles’ nest in the beach dunes if nearby lights were not modified before hatching.

The Endangered Species Act protects sea turtles at the federal level, while local sea turtle protection ordinances prohibit lights visible from the beach.

“The lights can be turned off, red or yellow (turtle-friendly) LED bulbs can be used, and they can be shielded from the beach to prevent them from confusing the sea turtles,” the Facebook post said.

The group said 105 of the 404 nests on Anna Maria Island were disoriented.

In addition to the group’s response, Manatee County, Mote Marine, the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and the Bradenton Beach Police Department provided assistance.

If you see a sea turtle in distress on Anna Maria Island, please call Anna Maria Island Turtle and Shorebird Monitoring at (941) 301-8434 or the FWC wildlife alert hotline at 888-404-3922For more information and ways to protect nesting sea turtles, visit www.islandturtlewatch.com.