IMIS

Florida’s nesting beaches and coastal and estuarine waters are critical habitat for multiple life stages of Federally Listed threatened and endangered species of Atlantic marine turtles. A core understanding of the population dynamics and seasonal distributions of these animals is essential in assessing steps to recovery of listed marine turtle species. Yet little is known about the early life stage migratory patterns of these turtles and their usage of the estuarine and nearshore habitats of Northeast Florida. One of these species is the Atlantic Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas) , which is listed as an endangered species in the State of Florida.