How You Can Help

How to Help Sea Turtles

Support sea turtle conservation and research. Mote scientists are seeking donations of supplies and funding to help support our Sea Turtle Patrol activities as we complete the 2014 season and prepare for another busy year in 2015.


To make a donation, visit www.mote.org/donate, click "Donations" and choose to donate to Mote's operating fund. During the checkout, enter “Sea Turtle Conservation and Research” in the box marked “donor notes.” To make an in-kind donation of supplies, please contact Kathy Klingensmith at 941-388-4441, ext. 308 or kak@mote.org.

Supplies needed for turtle patrol include:

  • Black permanent markers from Sharpie
  • 100-foot large measuring tapes with non-metal blades
  • Paint roller covers, 9-inch and 4-inch (for painting yellow stakes to mark nests)
  • Flagging tape (for marking nests)
  • Latex gloves, medium size (for excavating hatched nests to document their contents)
  • Rubber mallets (for pounding stakes into the sand to mark nests)
  • Handheld GPS units (for documenting locations of turtle activities)
  • Digital cameras (for documenting nests and turtle crawls
  • All-terrain vehicle covers (for ATVs used to patrol beaches)
  • Yellow paint, 5-gallon cans (for painting stakes to mark nests)
  • Large tarps (used when painting nest stakes)
  • WD-40 lubricant (1 gallon)
  • AAA and AA batteries (for GPS and cameras used to document nests)
  • Waterproof field notebooks (from “Rite in the Rain” brand)
  • Red LED headlamps (for monitoring and studying sea turtles at night on the beach – red light does not disturb nesting turtles or hatchlings)

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