Florida saw a record number of sea turtle nests last season - June through late September. Numbers tripled since 2022 along the Space Coast, a 72-mile beach on Florida's central east coast near Kennedy Space Center. The Space Coast is unique because it contains 24 miles of undeveloped and unpopulated coast, much of it on federally protected land.

More than 52,500 nests were recorded: 20,545 loggerhead nests, 31,893 green sea turtle nests, 61 leatherback nests, and three Kemp's Ridley nests. After decades of initiating protections for the turtles that nest on Florida's southeast coast - the densest nesting region in the world - conservationists are now witnessing the fruits of their labors.

For example, they have convinced local governments to urge seaside residents to turn off their lights or pull their blinds after 9 p.m. Lights from seashore businesses and dwellings confuse dehydrated and exhausted sea turtles, causing them to move toward the artificial light rather than the ocean. Hatchlings, instead of crawling to the ocean, can be attracted to artificial light, making them susceptible to predators, even cars, or dying in the sunlight by failing to reach the ocean.

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