MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (AP) - Wildlife officials are trying to determine how a sea turtle ended up dead on a Florida beach.
Miami-Dade County Sea Turtle Conservation Program surveyors told the Miami Herald that the 300-pound female loggerhead sea turtle was found Monday morning. It appeared that she had been nesting on Miami Beach earlier that morning or the previous night.
Program manager Teal Kawana says they’re not sure what killed the otherwise healthy turtle. The animal’s body was found at the water line in front of a freshly laid nest. That nest and another nearby showed signs of being disturbed by ATV tracks and some boot prints.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission took the turtle’s carcass for a necropsy.
Sea turtles are protected by state and federal law.
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Information from: The Miami Herald, https://www.herald.com
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