Escambia County Wraps Up Successful 2026 Sea Turtle Season

Escambia County has wrapped up the 2026 sea turtle nesting season, with county staff and volunteers recording a higher nesting count across county beaches than in previous years.

County staff and volunteers recorded 50 nests on Escambia County beaches this year, compared to 38 nests logged in 2025. Loggerhead turtles accounted for all 50 nests in Escambia County, while a variety of other species laid nests across Florida beaches including green, leatherback, kemps ridley, and olive ridley turtles.

Sea Turtle Patrol Volunteers recorded the following data during the 2026 Sea Turtle Nesting Season:

• 35 nests laid on Pensacola Beach
• 15 nests laid on Perdido Key
• 16 successful hatchings
• 30 nests lost to tidal impacts from Tropical Storm Bertha
• 1,080 hatchlings produced from successful nests
• Hatchlings from 13 nests experienced disorientation from artificial lights
• 2 nesting females became disoriented due to artificial lights

Overall, nests in Escambia County averaged a 63.5% hatch success and a 64% emergence success.

"We're thrilled with the way this year's sea turtle season turned out," Environmental Program Manager Jordan Wingate said. "Despite some challenges, we had our most successful year in the last five years, which is incredible to see. We couldn't do this without our volunteers, and I'd like to thank them for all their hard work and passion for protecting our coastal wildlife. I look forward to another successful sea turtle nesting season next year."

About sea turtle season in Escambia County:

Sea turtle season runs from May 1 until Oct. 31 in Escambia County, with Sea Turtle Patrol Volunteers starting their patrols at first light to have the best chance of spotting tracks, nests, and other turtle activity before footprints, wind, and waves obscure the tracks. Volunteers and staff continue to check on nests during the incubation period, ensuring they remain undisturbed and remain on stand-by to assist with strandings and other turtle-related incidents. Beachgoers are reminded to be aware during sea turtle nesting season, and to never disturb nesting sea turtles or hatchlings.

Four species of sea turtle nest in Escambia County. The loggerhead and green sea turtles are the most common nesters, followed by the less common Kemp's ridley and leatherback. Female turtles will make their way onto the beaches through early summer and may nest several times in a single season.

After approximately two months of incubation, the hatchling turtles will emerge all at once under the cover of darkness and race to the open Gulf water, where there are fewer predators. After a few years of growing and feeding, they will return to our area as juveniles and sub-adults, where they will continue to grow and feed until they are mature enough to mate and lay nests of their own. Juvenile and adult sea turtles can often be seen foraging in our bays and sounds year-round, including near local fishing piers and artificial reefs.

To learn more about Escambia County's "Leave No Trace" ordinance and how you can help protect sea turtles, visit the county website.

To report someone disturbing a sea turtle nest or to report an injured, dead or harassed sea turtle, call Escambia County Coastal Programs at 850-281-5904 or 850-490-1029, or call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission at 1-888-404-3922 (mobile phone: *FWC or #FWC). To learn more about sea turtles on Escambia County beaches, visit the county's sea turtle page.