Coyotes destroying sea turtle nests on Sanibel at alarming rate

SANIBEL, Fla. (WINK) — More than 340 loggerhead nests have been documented on Sanibel and Captiva islands, up almost 200 nests from the same time last year, according to the Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation.

While more mama turtles are making their way ashore, not every nest is making it to hatch day. One of the biggest threats is something called depredation.

That's when a predator, in this case coyotes, finds a sea turtle nest, digs it up and eats the eggs inside. So far this season, 70 nests have been lost to coyote depredation, up from 38 nests at this point last year.

It's not just predators causing problems. High tides have also washed out 19 nests.

A washout happens when water from high tides or storms floods a nest, damaging or destroying the eggs before they have a chance to hatch. Last year, only one nest was washed out at this point.

This year, 15 washouts were on Sanibel and four on Captiva. Despite those losses, the overall nest count remains ahead of last year, which is a positive sign for Southwest Florida's sea turtles.

Nesting season ends Oct. 31.