SCCF’s sea turtle team reports that 31,320 hatchlings have now made their way to the Gulf during the 2026 record-breaking nesting season. That total includes 30,793 loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and 527 green (Chelonia mydas) hatchlings, up from 29,627 earlier this month.

Sanibel’s loggerhead count has reached 929 nests, building on the island’s new single-season record. The previous record of 878 was set in 2023. Sanibel’s west end, spanning the West and Far West zones, now has 714 loggerhead nests, up from a previous high of 631.

Combined, loggerhead nests across Sanibel and Captiva total 1,172, just five nests shy of the 1,177 loggerhead record set in 2023. Adding both islands’ green sea turtle nests brings the season’s total to 1,187 nests.

Sanibel alone has 942 nests, including 929 loggerhead and 13 green sea turtle nests. Captiva has recorded 243 loggerhead and 2 green nests, for a total of 245.

Every Hatchling Counts

Nest productivity, the number of hatchlings that successfully reach the ocean, is one of the key measures of a nesting season’s success. Several days after hatchlings emerge, SCCF’s permitted nest monitors inventory each nest to see how many eggs were laid and how many produced a hatchling.

“The true measure of how successful a nesting season is takes into consideration both the number of nests laid and the number of hatchlings produced,” said Sea Turtle Biologist Jack Brzoza.

Sea turtles are long-lived, but very few hatchlings survive to adulthood. That makes highly productive nests essential for nesting populations to replace themselves over time. Predation, tidal washouts, and rising sand temperatures can all reduce hatchling production. Protective screens placed over marked nests help keep predators out while still letting hatchlings emerge on their own.

“Once nesting season ends on Oct. 31, we’ll calculate overall hatch success rates for loggerheads and greens on Sanibel and Captiva,” says Brzoza.

Decades of Protection

This season’s record reflects decades of conservation work on Sanibel and Captiva, home to one of the longest-running sea turtle monitoring programs in the U.S. The team continues to monitor nests daily across both islands. Residents and visitors can help protect the remaining nests and hatchlings in a few simple ways:

Lights out. Turn off or shield beachfront lights, and skip flashlights on the beach, because artificial light can disorient sea turtles.

Fill in holes. Hatchlings can become trapped in holes left in the sand.

Give turtles space. Never approach, touch, shine lights on, or take flash photos of nesting turtles.

Clear the beach. Sea turtles can’t move in reverse, so flatten sandcastles and take chairs, tents, and toys home at the end of the day.

Pack out trash. Litter attracts predators, and turtles can swallow or become tangled in trash and fishing line.

Leave screens in place. Nest screens protect the eggs while allowing hatchlings to emerge without help.

Call for help. Report any issues with nests, nesting turtles, or hatchlings by calling our Sea Turtle Hotline at 978-728-3663 (978-SAVE-ONE).

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