Threatened Loggerhead Sea Turtle Returns to Florida

From the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS):

Threatened loggerhead returns to Florida to nest: After spending the past year and a half foraging for food in the Bahamas, "Sally" the loggerhead sea turtle--nick-named after the Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell--is returning to Florida's Dry Tortugas. 

She is expected to spend the next three-to-four months there nesting, where she will likely crawl up on beaches in the middle of the night to nest up to 6 times, laying as many as 100 eggs each time. At the end of the season, Sally will likely again take the 685 mile trip to the Bahamas and start the cycle again. Last tagged in May 2013, USGS researchers are studying these threatened turtles to determine not only where they spend time during the breeding season, but also their migratory routes and locations of foraging sites, or feeding areas critical for sustaining their populations.

A news USGS study found that about 44 percent of loggerhead turtles that nest in the Dry Tortugas forage in the Bahamas, returning to Florida every two-to-three years to nest. You can follow Sally's voyage athttp://bit.ly/1yXyKXr. The maps are updated when the transponder activates every three days.

Photos taken with approval of USFWS and FWC with appropriate permits, which are on file with the USGS