A Bird’s Eye View: Assessing Sea Turtle Presence in Florida’s Gulf Stream and Coastal Waters

Assessing the presence or absence of marine turtles in an open system poses both
observational and analytical challenges due to the migratory nature of marine turtles and their
use of large current systems. Concentrations can shift as turtles shift between oceanic and neritic
stages and migrate between breeding and foraging grounds. We conducted standard aerial
surveys monthly from 2011-2012 to capture seasonal snapshots of sea turtle presence. Each
survey covered the area from a northern boundary near West Palm Beach, Florida
26°43′N to a southern boundary near Miami, Florida 25°40′N, USA with
transects up to 20-50 km offshore. 218 turtles were observed during the course of this study
2011: n 79; 2012: n 139. We summarize our sightings by season: Winter December-February,
Spring March-May, Summer June-August, and Fall September-November to examine trends in
presence of sea turtles. A variety of sizes were observed throughout the year, indicating the
presence of several life stages of marine turtles in Florida’s waters during all four seasons. While
it is understood that marine turtles use the waters off the eastern coast of Florida, here we
document the magnitude of the shift in turtle presence each season throughout two years and
where the turtles occur most frequently. Our assessment of marine turtles in the waters off of
southeast Florida provide valuable metrics describing the in-water biology of these turtles and
for the first time, provide a quantitative assessment of annual and inter-annual fluctuations in
presence in the major current and along our coast.