Miami-Dade County Parks kicks off sea turtle nesting season with Turtlepalooza at Crandon Park

Sea turtle nesting season is underway and Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces invites the public to join its conservation team on Saturday, May 18, 2024, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., for the 2^nd annual Turtlepalooza at the Crandon Park Visitor’s & Biscayne Nature Center, 6767 Crandon Blvd., Miami FL 33149.

Turtlepalooza recognizes the start of the sea turtle nesting season and Miami-Dade Parks’ role in leading sea turtle conservation in the County. The event will include a conservation village featuring local environmental awareness organizations, family-friendly activities celebrating sea turtles and coastal habitats, a speaker series featuring opportunities to meet sea turtle biologists and other conservation experts, as well as the opportunity to participate in a marine debris cleanup from the park’s shoreline.

Every March to October, Florida’s beaches host the largest gathering of nesting sea turtles in the United States. Miami-Dade County Parks, which maintains the County’s 17 miles of beaches, is charged with protecting these endangered species through the protection of sea turtle nests and hatchlings, as well as a variety of conservation and environmental education efforts.

In 1980, Miami-Dade Parks established the Miami-Dade County Parks Sea Turtle Conservation Program in partnership with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and in accordance with the Endangered Species Act. At that time, many hatchlings were found stranded along the A1A highway. Turtles are instinctually drawn to the ocean by natural cues such as the night sky but often get disoriented by artificial city lights and head the wrong direction. Today, that program monitors an average of 600 nests per season and responds to sick, dead, and injured turtles year-round.

Miami-Dade Parks’ Sea Turtle Conservation work aligns with that of conservationists around the world to protect sea turtles, whose numbers are a globally recognized indicator of the health of our oceans. Zoo Miami, also a part of the Miami-Dade Parks system, operates the first sea turtle hospital in the county to treat injured or sick sea turtles, nursing them back to health and returning them to their natural habitats. 

The Miami-Dade County Parks Sea Turtle Conservation Program invites everyone to be part of the sea turtle season, by adopting a nest, experiencing a sea turtle night release, or observing a daytime nest excavation this summer. For more information, visit the web page.

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About Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation, and Open Spaces

Miami-Dade County Parks, Recreation, and Open Spaces is among the three largest park systems in the United States, consisting of 300 parks and 40,000+ acres of parks and natural areas, comprised of active, passive parklands and nature preserves. It is one of the most unique and diverse park and recreation systems in the world, focused on placemaking, health and fitness, and conservation and stewardship.

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To request materials in accessible format, sign language interpreters, and/or any accommodation to participate in any County-sponsored program or meeting, please contact Miami-Dade Parks ADA Coordinator at 305-755-7848 or email, [email protected], five days in advance to initiate your request. TTY users may also call 711 (Florida Relay Service).

MARIA I. NARDI, PARKS, RECREATION AND OPEN SPACES

Hickman Building
275 NW 2nd Street, Miami, FL 33128