It is said that the average person will work in a volunteer position with an organization for about four years, after which, they will move on to something that is new. In looking at our STPS membership, I see people who have actively participated in our programs for five, ten, fifteen, and almost twenty years. It is this kind of dedication that inspires me to continue with this organization. It is the unselfish act of giving by so many of our members that has made me proud to serve as their chairman. If you've spent one hour attending an event or helping STPS in some way, you've earned far more recognition than I can give you. I truly want you to know that your fellow members know the sacrifice you make. It is regretful that the turtles can't send each of us a thank you card, but remember each time you see one of these creatures lumbering across the sand that without people just like you, they wouldn't be here.

I can only hope that my efforts have helped to inspire those of you that are new to our Society. It is the action of all of us and not one that can accomplish our goal. I'll still be with STPS and working with their survival; I hope you'll be there with me!

 Board of Director Elections

By Jerry Heyes

 There will be an election to fill the open Board of Director positions at the General Membership meeting on December 10. The current Board of Directors is recommending a slate of four individuals, three of whom are presently Board members and who have agreed to run for re-election for another two year term. They are Richard Winn, Brandon Smith, and Cindy Ullmer. The fourth recommended nominee is Dan Beckett. In addition, any member present at the meeting, may nominate "from the floor" a member in good standing to be voted upon by the membership.  Richard Winn has announced that he will be stepping down from the position of Chairman of the Board, a position that he had held for four years. Richard has done an outstanding job of helping create a Society we can all be proud of. During his tenure, Richard has introduced a number of procedures that have helped STPS become a more professional organization at many different levels. He will be a hard act to follow, but thankfully, he has agreed to remain on the Board to help steer the ship. After the new Board is in place, they will elect a new Chairperson.   Anthony Poponi resigned his Board position as of November 1. As many of you know, Anthony was married on October 22^nd, and he and his lovely wife have moved to Colorado where Anthony can involve himself in snow boarding.   While not a Board member, Cindy Dolaway will be taking over the function of event scheduling from Cindy Ullmer. Cindy Dolaway is a retired school teacher.  

 Loggerhead Biker Chick!

By Richard Winn 

Labor Day was anything but relaxing for my household. My holiday morning to sleep late and relax with a cup of coffee was changed with a 7:30 A.M. call to rescue a turtle caught in the surf near the Beachwood's Condominiums in Melbourne Beach. A call indicating a turtle in the surf meant I would put on my swimming suit and put my cell phone and wallet in a water tight bag, just in case. I was on the beach in less than 15 minutes looking for my wayward turtle. I was surprised by the four to six foot high surf roaring up to within ten yards of the dunes. The ocean was far too rough for surfers, but a healthy sea turtle returning to the ocean from nesting shouldn't have too much difficulty; therefore, I thought I was looking for a juvenile turtle or a wash-in.   The ocean had a srong southerly flow, so I began to search the shoreling to the south. I ran into one lady coming my way and asked her if she had seen a sea turtle on the beach. She replied that a turtle was being tossed around by the waves and the current was taking her down the beach. Fighting the soft sand, I moved south as fast as possible and soon overtook the man and his wife that had called abouth the turtle. They indicated that she was struggling to swim out, but the waves were washing her back into shore, and she was still floating south. I continued to move down the beach, and I caught up to the turtle south of Spessard Holland Park. She was a full adult turtle, and as stated by the others, she was struggling to get outside the wave-break but was being tossed upside down and tumbled over and over by the surf. I watched her for a few minutes and knew this turtle was in trouble. At this point I didn't know if she was injured, but I did know that every minute that passed she was becoming more fatigued and she wasn't going to make it out. She didn't swim under the water to get past the breakers. She was swimming straight into the waves.

  After a couple of waves pushed her to within ten yards of shore, I attempted to reach her and pull her on to the beach. I soon found myself fighting her and the six foot waves crashing on top of us. At one point, a wave took her under and drove her into me, taking us both under and thrashing about. It was apparent that I couldn't handle her and the ocean at this point. She was too large and was still putting up a good fight. I decided to get back to my truck, which was now a half a mile north of me, and call for some backup help.

  I made my truck and moved it to the new Ponce De Leon Landing Park, hoping to intercept her as she drifted down. I had nearly misjudged the current, because she was passing by me as I made it to the cossover. Unfortunately, it was a holiday, and I couldn't raise the cavalry to ride to her rescue. I left a couple of messages on the stranding team's phone and hoped to find someone walking along the beach to assist me. It was Labor Day, but I was the only person around, so I decided to make another attempt at getting her in. This time I played it a little smarter, once I waded into the surf, I grabbed the hind end of the turtle to turn her around facing the shore. She was still swimming, so with the help of the next few waves, I steered her into the beach. After a short time of looking the turtle over, I got lucky and noticed an ATV vehicle coming down the beach for the morning nesting survey. As it approached, I waved down the rider and discovered Dean Bagley of the UCF Sea Turtle Research Group. I asked her if she had any students at the US Fish & Wildlife house that I could draft in helping me get the turtle higher on the beach. She looked at me and just sighed and stated that the students went home for the holiday. She was the only one out doing nesting surveys.

  Dean wanted to get off the ATV and help me, but she had been injured by a nasty barb of a stingray and couldn't get the open wound wet in the surf. I did seek her help in phoning both FWCC and Nancy Yates of the STPS Stranding Team to see how to handle the turtle. At this time, I was happily surprised by my wife, Pamela, coming down the beach to lend me a hand. She told me she had a feeling that I needed help and she came looking for me. She was right, and we struggled to move the turtle out of the rising tide. While I struggled with our turtle, Pamela went off in search of more help. Funny, I couldn't find anyone nearby, but my wife came back with three big burly young men. At first they were disappointed that the damsel in distress was a sea turtle, but they quickly became involved in our rescue.

  Dean was able to reach Nancy Yates, and Nancy told us that she would transport the turtle to the rehabilitation hospital at Ponce Inlet in Daytona Beach if we could get it to the STPS office. I had a tarp in my truck and the idea was to place the turtle on the tarp and have the five of us haul it up and over the dune to my truck. Dean came up with a better idea and she offered to put the turtle on th ATV using the tarp and slowly transport it up to my truck. By the way, we found out from the rehabilitation hospital that our turtle weighed 268 pounds and was 108 cm in length. The site of a sea turtle straddled across the ATVV ridind down the beach is priceless. With a lot of sweat and strain, we finally moved the turtle int my truck and bid farewell to our small rescue team. I bet FWCC never thought their ATV's would be put to such use!

  There was one more struggle, and that arose when we had to move the turtle from my truck to the STPS Jeep for its ride to Daytona. We found a couple of more helpful guys and completed our transfer without injury to the turtle or people.

  The professional staff at Ponce Inlet were able to determine that our sea turtle's problem and exhaustion was caused from a case of pneumonia and six to eight weeks of antibiotics should get her feelings well enough to try that swim again.

 Hurricanes Wash Young Sea Turtles Back Onto the Beach

By Jerry Heyes

  After Hurricane Rita, a strong easterly wind washed thousands of young sea turtles back onto Brevard County beaches. These post hatchlings were entwined in clumps of sargassum weed which had once been their home as they floated on the edge of the Gulf Stream. In one week the STPS handled 1,000 live wash backs, for a total of approximately 1,500 over a period of a few weeks. Many of the turtles were brought to the STPS office by people walking the beaches. On busy days, the STPS Stranding Team received up to 36 pager calls from the public. Sadly, it was estimated that there were 5 dead turtles found for every live one.

  A considerable amount of effort was required to educate the public on how to handle the turtles. Wash backs had to be separated from hatchlings and premature hatchlings, as they are all treated differently. Sea water had to be changed daily. Unhatched eggs brought to the office also had to be dealt with.

  Wash backs do not have the energy to make the long swim out to the Gulf Stream a second time, so they must be taken out by boat. However, this could not be done until the ocean subsided. Since the STPS does not have the authorization to feed wash backs, they had to be taken up to the rehab center at Ponce Inlet in Volusia County. STPS made a total of 15 trips to shuttle wash backs and eggs to Ponce Inlet.

 A Fun Day of Learning About Sea Turtles

By Anthony Poponi

  If you weren't here for our book reading, book signing, and puppet show on September 10^th you should really be upset with yourself. We had a ton of fun with local author Mara Uman Hixon. Mara's been gracious enough to donate a lot of her time traveling across the country to promote her wonderful children's book Turtle's Way: Loggy, Greeny, and Leather. If you take the time to read your newsletter you've probably heard us mention the book before but it's worth mentioning again that this colorful illustrated book was written, illustrated, and published locally. Better yet, Mara's been generous enough to donate copies of the book to the STPS as well as future proceeds from the book!

  Mara's reading was followed by a lively puppet show featuring Myrtle the Sea Turtle and her ocean friends! Some of Myrtle's friends like dolphins, whales, and sting rays were great to see but Myrtle always worries when she sees the stink-foot shark that loves to eat stinky little feet! As you can see we had a lot of fun being goofy and the coloring and stamping activities that followed made it a fun day of learning about sea turtles.

 Book Signing Repeat

  Mara Unman Hixson, the local author who wrote the book Turtle's Way: Loggy, Greeny, and Leather; has graciously agreed to do another book signing at the STPS office on Sunday, December 11, from 1 P.M. to 4 P.M. A puppet show, magic show, and refreshments will also be provided for the children. So if you missed the first event, bring the little ones to the STPS office for an afternoon of fun.

  Sea Turtles in the News

by Brandon Smith

  Rare Leatherback Dies in Aquarium
Boston, MA - A 350 pound leatherback sea turtle, which washed ashore during hurricane Dennis, recently died at the New England Aquarium. Leatherbacks, which reach up to 2000 pounds, have a poor record of being held in captivity. When first examined by aquarium staff the turtle appeared to have an intestinal parasite and low blood sugar. The staff stabilized the 5 foot long turtle with antibiotics and intravenous fluid. She was then transferred to a rhabilitation tank and attached to a special harness to keep her from banging into the sides. She was being monitored around the clock for two days when, just after midnight, she failed to come up for a breath. All efforts by staff to resuscitate her failed. Her unfortunate death was not in vain as it allowed researchers to evaluate the performance of the special harness which may be able to save rescued leatherbacks in the future. The exact cause of death is not currently known but Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute will conduct a full body CAT scan and necropsy.

  King Midas Returns to New Orleans
New Orleans, LA - King Midas, a 300 pound green turtle, will be returning to the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas on Thursday, November 13^th. King Midas was evacuated, along with many other animals, during Hurricane Katrina and has been staying at Moody Gardens Aquarium in Galveston, TX. After being in aquariums for over 35 years he has been in captivity longer than any other sea turtle and is considered a giant among green turtles at 4.5 feet long. King Midas marks an important milestone for the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, being the first animal evacuee to return since Katrina hit New Orleans. He will return to the aquarium at 9:00 A.M. Thursday after a 6 to 8 hour trek over land from Texas. Other animals from the aquarium are still being housed at zoos and aquariums across the U.S. and will hopefully return as the aquarium continues reconstruction efforts.

  Court Rules in Favor of Longline Rule, Despite Sea Turtle Concerns
Washington, D.C. - In early October the Ocean Conservancy and Oceana lost their court battle against National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) over the use of smaller hooks for longline fisheries. A ruling by NMFS last year forced longline fisheries, which primarily target tuna, swordfish, and other large, open-water fish, to switch from traditionally used j-hooks to the circle hooks. NMFS studies showing circle hooks reduce bycatch of sea turtles by 50 to 90 percent prompted last year's rule change. However, during the rule making, fishermen argued for the use of smaller circle hooks than were tested by NMFS, and won. The Ocean Conservancy and Oceana challenged this ruling saying the smaller hooks do not do enough to reduce the bycatch of sea turtles and is therefore a violation of the endangered species act. Judge Richard Leon, of the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia ruled against the lawsuit stating NMFS has other factors than just minimizing bycatch to consider. A technical memorandum from last year's fisheries season has shown that the smaller circle hooks are catching hundreds more sea turtles than had been prohected by NMFS when the lonline rule was first implemented. Unfortunately the memorandum came out too late to be considered in this lawsuit. The Ocean Conservancy and Oceana are now considering an appeal.

 Donation Received

  The STPS extends its heartfelt thanks to the Orange County Chapter of the American Association of Zoo Keepers located in Santa Anna, California, for their very generous donation to support the STPS's efforts in educating the public about threatened and endangered sea turtles.

  STPS Upcoming Events & Presentations Calendar

Dec.  3:  Beach Clean-up at Coconut Point Park

Dec.  3:  2005 Sally Ride Science Festival

Dec. 10:  STPS Holiday Party/General Meeting

Jan.   3:  Grace Lutheran Preschool

Jan.   5:  STPS General Meeting

Jan.   7:  Beach Clean-up at Coconut Point Park

Feb.  2:  STPS General Meeting

Feb.  4:  Beach Clean-up at Coconut Point Park

Feb.  7:  Eau Gallie Federation

Mar.  2:  STPS General Meeting

Mar.  4:  Beach Clean-up at Coconut Point Park

Mar.  4:  Brevard Boy Scout Weekend

Mar.  5:  Brevard Boy Scout Weekend

Apr. 14:  Patrick Air Force NCO Club

The Carr

Companion

The newsletter of the

Friends of the Carr Refuge

 The Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge authorized by an act of Congress in 1989, is a twenty and one half mile stretch of beach, on the Southeast coast of Florida. This refuge hosts the largest concentration of nesting loggerhead and green sea turtles in the United States. It is the second most important nesting site in the world for loggerhead turtles. The Refuge protects animal species by preserving the coastal habitat on which they depend; and is also a place for public recreation and education. The Refuge, named for the late Dr. Archie Carr, honors his lifetime commitment to conservation and research. 

 Turtle Talk: 2005 Nesting Season Report

Green Turtles: The nesting of green turtles in the Refuge continues to exceed expectations, as a new record was reached in the number of nests laid in a single season. A total of 3,638 nests were laid suring 2005, besting the previous record of 2,970 nests in 2002. There were an amazing 94 nests laid in one night in the Southern Brevard section alone. This also broke the former biennial high/low nesting pattern, with two steadily increasing years since 2003. Nesting of green turtles began on June 4, and ended on October 8, with the peak nesting on the last full week of July. Once outside the confines of the Refuge, the number of green nests fell off dramatically, indicating their preference for the dark isolated beaches found in the Refuge. There were 6,753 false crawls recorded in the Refuge, which resulted in a nesting success ratio of approximately 35%. When compared to the average nesting success ratio of 50% (1 fc. to 1 nest) recorded over the last 20 years, there is an indication that the changes in the beach due to hurricanes, and beach reconstruction, have had an effect on the ability of the female nesters to find a spot to their liking.

 Loggerheads: After six years of falling numbers of loggerhead nests in the Refuge, an increase in loggerhead nesting was recorded this year. For 2005, there were 11,085 nests laid, which represents an increase over last year, of approximately 16%. There were 15,213 false crawls recorded for a nesting success ratio of approximately 42%. This was the first year since 1998 that the nesting success rate fell below 50% for loggerheads, again reflecting the dramatic changes to the beach. In 1998, we had a long drought, resulting in very dry sand, which made nesting difficult. The peak in nesting occurred during the last week of June.

 Leatherbacks: A new record high of 68 leatherback nests were recorded in the Refuge this year, beating the previous record of 53 nests in 2003. Leatherbacks are beginning to show a biennial pattern of peak nesting similar to greens, and like greens they are increasing exponentially. The Refuge is at the northern limit of the leatherback nesting range, and until recent years, finding a leatherback nest in the Refuge was very rare. Leatherbacks had only six false crawls for a nesting success ratio of about 92%, which is typical for leatherbacks.

 Refuge Reports:

 Raccoon Depredation:  Loggerhead nests lost to raccoons this year were reduced to 313 in the entireRefuge, resulting in a low depredation rate of 3.2%. This is down from over a thousand just a few years ago. Remarkably, Sebastian Inlet State Park had zero nests depredated. As part of the predator control plan, a total of six raccoons were removed from areas with the highest depredation rates in South Brevard and Wabasso Beach.

 Dune Collapes:  There were four instances of dunes collapsing on nesting green turtles, trapping them under the sand. Three were dug out and rescued by UCF sea turtle researchers as they came upon them while doing their early morning nest surveys. Unfortunately one green turtle suffocated before she could be rescued. Sea turtles cannot move backward, so if the weight of sand is too great for them to turn, they become trapped. There were also four instances of sea turtles crawling to A1A where dune vegetation was wiped out, but all four made it back to sea.

 Geotubes:   Of the five installations of Geotube sand containment systems recently in stalled in the Refuge, four were exposed of their sand covering as of September 9, after several days of very rough surf. It remains to be seen whether normal sand accretion will adequately recover them prior to the next nesting season.

 Turtle Watch Programs:  A total of 61 Turtle Watch Programs were held in the Refuge this summer, introducing 1,232 members of the public, to the natural wonder of seeing a nesting sea turtle. These programs were conducted by the Refuge, Sebastian Inlet State Park, and the Caribbean Conservation Corp. The watch programs conducted by the Sea Turtle Preservation Society are held to the north of the Refuge boundary.

 Backyard Issues:

 Nest Program:  The NESTS Program reached a milestone with the first participants reaching the Guardian Level. Cathy and Tuck Ferrell, who live on Ambersand Beach in the southern section of the Refuge, were presented with their award at the recent Archie Carr Refuge Working Group meeting held in the Melbourne Beach Town Hall.

 Who to call for Information: