Sea Turtle Nesting In Florida Down By Nearly Half

Central Florida News 6 Jan 09;

BREVARD COUNTY -- Loggerhead sea turtle nesting in Florida has dropped 41 percent the last 10 years, according to new numbers from Florida Fish and Wildlife.

The largest concentration of loggerheads in the U.S. is in Brevard County, at the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge, south of Melbourne Beach.

Since 1998, the loggerhead population has dropped from near 60,000 to less than 30,000 in 2008.

Though there was a spike in the population last year, Florida Fish and Wildlife said not to be fooled by those numbers, as the trend was that the numbers were dropping.

Researchers said they were not sure what was causing the population drop, saying that it could be anything from lights on the beach to beach erosion projects, or even something far out to the sea over which the state has no control.

The state said recent hurricanes were probably not to blame, because the turtles that are nesting are between 20 and 30 years old.