North Palm Beach, FL (July 7, 2023) – John D. MacArthur Beach State Park recently received a new John Deere utility vehicle (UTV) from the Sea Turtle Grants Program, which is funded from proceeds from the sale of the Florida Sea Turtle License Plate. The new vehicle will be used for Sea Turtle Data Collection during the Park’s morning turtle nesting beach surveys. Every morning during Palm Beach County’s sea turtle nesting season (March through October), dedicated park rangers and trained volunteers survey the beach at MacArthur Beach State Park to track and record the number of turtles that come ashore overnight.
“A reliable UTV is essential for daily sea turtle surveys, especially for such a densely populated nesting beach here at MacArthur Beach State Park. On average, we record over 3,000 Green, Loggerhead and Leatherback Sea Turtle nests on our 1.6 miles of beach annually,” says Park Manager Andy Flanner. “We are thankful the Sea Turtle Grants Program continues to support local sea turtle conservation efforts like the ones here at MacBeach.”
Funds awarded through the Sea Turtle Grants Program have supported important advances in sea turtle research, public education and rehabilitation of sick and injured sea turtles. The program disperses over $300,000 in grants every year to coastal county governments, educational institutions and nonprofit groups through a competitive grants program. Since its establishment, the Sea Turtle Grants Program has been able to award more than $4.2 million in grants in support of over 300 sea turtle research, conservation, and education projects throughout Florida.
To learn more about the Sea Turtle Grants Program and the “Helping Sea Turtles Survive” license plate specialty license place, visit www.helpingseaturtles.org.
John D. MacArthur Beach State Park, Palm Beach County’s only state park, is situated on a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and the Lake Worth Lagoon. The Park is made up of 436 acres of pristine coastal land and contains four different communities or habitats including seven species of plants and 22 species of animals on the endangered or threatened list. For more information about MacArthur Beach State Park visit, macarthurbeach.org.
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