Sharing the Beach

These signs are new on the Gulf Shore beaches.  Sea turtle populations are in decline around the word and many species are listed as endangered or threatened by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  Increased human use and development add to the natural threats, such as storms and predators


Sea Turtles are threatened and endangered animals that look for a safe place to nest and where their hatchlings can emerge from the sand and then find their way safely into the warm Gulf waters. Thousands of sea turtle hatchlings take their first steps on the popular beaches here from May through October.

Protecting Alabama Sea Turtles May through October

Sea Turtles are threatened and endangered animals that look for a safe place to nest and where their hatchlings can emerge from the sand and then find their way safely into the warm Gulf waters. Thousands of sea turtle hatchlings take their first steps on the popular beaches here from May through October.

Sea Turtle Nest

Female sea turtles lay more than 100 leathery, ping-pong ball-size eggs at a time. Only a few young turtles make it to adulthood. Hatchling sea turtles find their way to the gulf waters partly by sing moonlight or starlight. Sea turtle incubation averages 55 to 60 days for nests in Alabama. Most hatchlings emerge together in an "eruption" from the nest.

Loggerhead Sea Turtles are Common in Alabama

Three species of sea turtles next on Alabama's Gulf Coast: Loggerhead, Kemp's Ridley and Green.
Adult loggerhead sea turtles weigh 175 to 350 pounds. Baby hatchlings weigh less than one ounce.

Seriously?