According to seaturtle.org, 97 sea turtle nests have been reported on Captiva Island. Amongst the world's oldest creatures, sea turtles are frequently found nesting around this time of year. In light of nesting season, which takes place between April and October, we decided to compile a list of facts you may not know about sea turtles, courtesy of the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation.

10 Fun Facts About Sea Turtles and the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation

1. The seven species that can be found today have been on the earth for about 110 million years.
2. Sea turtle monitoring on Sanibel originally began in the late 1950’s with Charles Lebuff and Caretta Research, Inc., making it one of the longest running monitoring programs in the country (The program was transferred to the Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation in 1992 when Caretta Research, Inc. disbanded).
3. The SCCF Sea Turtle Program surveys 18 miles of beach, from the Sanibel lighthouse to Blind Pass, every morning from April – October. 
   
4. More than 100 volunteers help with the daily search for tracks that the sea turtle left behind when she emerged from the sea the night before.
5. Only an estimated one in 1,000 to 10,000 will survive to become reproductively active adults. This is due to many threats, including those caused by humans.
   
6. For only the second time in Sanibel’s more than 50-year history of sea turtle monitoring, a leatherback nest was documented in May, 2015. The other leatherback nest recorded on Sanibel was laid in June of 2009.
   
7. Beaches with artificial lights cause nesting females and hatchlings to become disoriented and crawl in the wrong direction, so it's recommended to turn off all lights on the beach (such as flashlights and beachfront houses).
   
8. Too much human interference may prevent females from laying their eggs, so it is recommended to observe only from a distance and to not disturb, use flash photography or shine lights.
9. Additional threats to sea turtles include boat strikes, commercial fishing, marine debris (ingestion and entanglement), coastal armoring, predation by crabs, birds, fish, sharks and mammals, and marine pollution.
10. You can symbolically adopt a sea turtle nest by clicking here!

All information courtesy of Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation, http://www.sccf.org/