Sea turtle nests along the barrier islands in Brevard and Indian River counties were far less damaged than expected by Hurricane Dorian’s brush with Florida’s coast.
An estimated 8,000 sea turtle nests washed away from the Brevard County portion of the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge which runs between Melbourne Beach and Wabasso Beach in Indian River County, according to the University of Central Florida’s Marine Turtle Research Group.
The refuge, which extends 20.5 miles, is considered one of the most important nesting grounds in Florida for threatened and endangered sea turtles.
The species most impacted by Dorian was green sea turtles, with the storm washing out an estimated 45 percent of the threatened species’ nests. Green turtles nest from May to October. There were 15,305 nests in the refuge before Dorian with 6,700 lost to the storm, according to UCF researchers.
Other Dorian-related nest losses in the refuge include leatherbacks, which nest March to July. Leatherback nests identified before Dorian numbered 35, with only one nest being lost. Loggerheads, which nest April to September, had a total of 10,808 nests before Dorian, with an estimated 2,260 nests lost.
“Thankfully, Dorian remained offshore,” said Kate Mansfield, Ph.D., who serves as director of UCF’s Marine Turtle Research Group.
“So, we were very lucky and was not as bad as it could have been. As with any hurricane, it is unlikely that all turtle nests for a season will be wiped out,” Mansfield said. “Many hatched before the storm, and new nests were laid after the storm.”
As it turned out, the evacuated UCF field station only briefly lost power and researchers were able to quickly get back out to the beach and start surveys again in between the tides, she said.
In Indian River County, the storm destroyed about 18 percent of the county 1,613 total nests over 22 miles of beach with 1,488 remaining after the storm.
County officials estimate more than 5,400 nests had hatched before the storm hit. The total nests counted since the season began in April: 6,159 loggerheads; 2,366 green; and 37 leatherbacks.
Staff writer Sue Cocking contributed to this report.
