Florida’s Sea Turtles Have a Banner Year, With Leatherbacks Setting a New Record

Every summer, along the sandy beaches of Florida, one of nature’s most ancient rituals plays out under the cover of darkness as female sea turtles haul themselves ashore to dig nests and lay their eggs. For three different species, the 2025 nesting season turned out to be a remarkable one, offering encouraging signs that conservation efforts are bearing fruit.

Loggerhead turtles, Florida’s most abundant nesters, recorded a strong showing of 100,951 nests statewide, remaining the dominant species on the state’s beaches. Green sea turtles, whose nesting numbers naturally swing between high and low years, posted 66,476 nests, making it their second-highest season on record. And leatherbacks — the largest of all sea turtles, capable of growing to enormous sizes and diving to extraordinary depths — set a brand-new statewide record with 2,012 nests, surpassing the previous high set in 2022.

These successes did not come easily. Just the year before, in 2024, a series of powerful hurricanes battered Florida’s coast, destroying dunes and washing away nesting habitat. Conservationists and volunteers worked through 2025 to help beaches recover, contributing to the strong rebound in nesting numbers.

Sea turtles are ancient mariners, having navigated the oceans for tens of millions of years, and their long lives mean recovery is measured across decades rather than single seasons. A record-breaking year for leatherbacks and a near-record for green turtles are exactly the kind of milestones that show conservation working over the long haul. As the 2026 season gets underway with another promising start, Florida’s beaches remain a vital nursery for some of the planet’s most beloved marine animals — and a reminder that patient stewardship of coastlines pays off generation after generation.