Every summer night from May through October, loggerhead, green and leatherback sea turtles haul themselves onto Amelia Island's beaches to lay their eggs, and a couple of months later the hatchlings dig out and scramble for the water. It's one of the best things about being here. It also comes with rules, and it's the reason we don't offer bonfires in the warm months.
The dates
Nesting season on Amelia Island and throughout Nassau County runs May 1 through October 31. Nests laid in May hatch around July; nests laid in August hatch into October. Volunteers with Amelia Island Sea Turtle Watch patrol the beach at dawn all season, marking and counting nests.
The rules for beachgoers
- Fill in your holes before you leave. A hatchling that falls into a sandcastle moat at night doesn't get out.
- Take everything off the beach at night: chairs, umbrellas, tents, toys. A nesting turtle that hits a chair turns around and goes back to sea without laying. (Our chair set-up service takes everything down each evening for exactly this reason.)
- Lights off after dark. Hatchlings find the ocean by its glow and will crawl toward a porch light or a phone screen instead. Beachfront rentals use amber bulbs; you keep flashlights and phones dark on the sand.
- Keep your distance: 50 feet from a marked nest, 50 yards from a turtle. Don't touch, don't feed, don't block its path.
- No fires on any county beach May 1 through October 31, and never on city beaches.
Why no bonfires in summer
Fire and light on a nesting beach are the two things turtles can't handle, so Nassau County bans beach fires for the whole season. That's why our bonfire season is November 1 through April 30: cool evenings, dark beaches and no nests. If you're here in summer, book the beach set-up for the day and plan your bonfire for the next cool-season trip.
How to actually see one
Don't go looking with a flashlight; you'll do harm and probably see nothing. Instead, walk the beach early in the morning in June or July and look for the tractor-like tracks from the water to the dune and the staked-off nest at the end. In late summer, a marked nest with a depression in the middle is close to hatching. Sea Turtle Watch posts nest counts and occasionally announces supervised nest excavations where you can see hatchlings up close. Report a turtle, a nest or a hatchling in trouble to ameliaislandseaturtlewatch@gmail.com.
What it means for your rentals
Nothing changes for bikes and boards; ride and paddle as usual, and give any marked nest a wide berth on the sand. For chairs and umbrellas, just bring them in at night, or let us do it. Fort Clinch State Park and the beaches by the Omni and the Plantation have some of the island's busiest nesting; the dune walkovers there are good places to spot tracks at sunrise.
Quick answers
When is sea turtle season on Amelia Island?
May 1 through October 31 every year.
Can I have a bonfire on Amelia Island in summer?
No. Beach fires are banned May through October for nesting season, and year-round on city beaches. Bonfire season is November through April on county beaches.
What do I do if I see a sea turtle on the beach?
Stay back 50 yards, stay dark and quiet, and let it do its thing. Email Amelia Island Sea Turtle Watch if it seems injured or disoriented.
Can I leave my beach chairs out overnight?
Not during nesting season. Bring them in, or book our set-up service and we handle it.
