Tourism can worsen deadly light pollution in sea turtle habitats
The harmful relationship between sea turtles and light pollution has emerged as an important consideration in sea turtle conservation. What is less known is the relationship between sea turtles and the tourists who visit them, and subsequently encourage increased development along pristine shorelines.
Light is an important navigation tool for sea turtles. But human interference through artificial light threatens to distort sea turtles’ ability to navigate and survive.
When newborn sea turtles first hatch on the beach they will stay beneath the sand and wait to emerge until nighttime after the temperature has cooled down, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Hatchlings will instinctively move towards the brightest area, which would naturally be the ocean, glowing from the reflection of the night sky. In an era of rapid human expansion, this is often not the case. Turtles may mistakenly follow the light shining from street lights and buildings where they are at an increased risk of mortality from fatigue, predation, dehydration, and collision with vehicles.
Light pollution may also impact mother sea turtles as they attempt to nest. In 2014, a loggerhead turtle looking to nest became disoriented by lights from a nearby condo and wandering into a street where she was struck and killed by a vehicle. Mothers may also refuse to nest on beaches where there are high levels of light pollution making it more difficult for her to successfully nest.
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Photo from Earth.com .
