This map contains a subtotal of all hatch reports submitted by STOP volunteers using the STOP website and is color coded by the total percent of hatchlings that disoriented towards lights.
Sea Turtle Oversight Protection (STOP) nighttime survey volunteers monitor sea turtle nests in Broward County. STOP counts the number of hatchlings that emerge from each nest in real-time on the beach as it happens. This requires many months of long nights on the beach.
Hatchlings that go east to the ocean are left alone. Hatchlings that disorient to lights are documented and recovered in buckets. Rescued hatchlings are released into the sea or taken to Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton. We do this as volunteers.
In 2010, STOP volunteers documented nearly 9,000 hatchlings that disoriented to lights in Broward County. Sadly, we only had enough volunteers to monitor 28% of the total nests. Imagine how many were missed...
STOP is based in Ft. Lauderdale but performs sea turtle hatchling rescue in all of Broward County including Deerfield Beach, Hillsboro Beach, Pompano, Lauderdale by the Sea, Fort Lauderdale, Dania and Hollywood.
In 2011, STOP volunteers rescued more hatchlings than the previous 3 years combined. Since 2007, STOP has rescued more than 25,000 sea turtle hatchlings from illegal lighting in Broward County.
We missed this nest on August 20th 2011. The entire nest went into the parking lot, down storm drains and into the street. The primary lights that caused this were city owned street lights on the west side of A1A.
5. Any person, firm, or corporation that illegally takes, disturbs, mutilates, destroys, causes to be destroyed, transfers, sells, offers to sell, molests, or harasses any marine turtle species, or the eggs or nest of any marine turtle species as described in this subsection, commits a third degree felony, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.Read in full.
"It is the policy of the City of Fort Lauderdale that no artificial light shall illuminate any area of the incorporated beaches of Fort Lauderdale, Florida."
