Lights Out for Turtles
Nesting turtles compete with tourists, businesses and coastal residents for use of sandy beaches. They need a quiet, dark beach to nest and produce babies, but it’s getting harder and harder for them to find them. The biggest problem may be the artificial light coming from those businesses and houses which confuse the turtles.
Artificial light discourages females from nesting. If a female fails to nest after multiple false crawls, she will resort to less-than-optimal nesting spots or deposit her eggs in the ocean. Hatchlings instinctively move toward the brightest illumination, which is normally moonlight reflecting off of the ocean. Artificial lighting causes hatchlings to become disoriented and wander in land, where they die of dehydration or predation.
Tybee does her part to help the turtles by reminding residents and businesses to keep their lights low, and/or to purchase turtle safe lighting and fixtures. From May 1 to October 31, we ask that you turn out the lights for the turtles or purchase special red lights that emit a very narrow portion of the visible light spectrum which is less intrusive to nesting sea turtles and hatchlings. Another option is to tint windows that face the beach; close opaque curtains or blinds after dark or install special fixtures to shield the lights from the beach. For these special lights you can go to Starry Night Lights’ website at: http://store.starrynightlights.com/trufrli.html.
Do your part and work with the environment to keep our turtles safe and producing.
