Contact: Lexie Beach
352-373-6441 or lexie@conserveturtles.org
April 2024
The Sea Turtle Grants Program (STGP), funded by the sale of Florida’s “Helping Sea Turtles Survive” specialty license plate, recently awarded $507,741.33to 27 different projects benefiting Florida sea turtles as part of the 2024-2025 grant funding cycle. Since it’s inception, the Sea Turtle License Plate Grants Program has awarded more than $8 million to conservation projects.
Each year, the Sea Turtle Grants Program distributes money to coastal county governments, educational and research institutions and nonprofit groups through a competitive application process. The sea turtle specialty license plate is also the primary source of funding for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Marine Turtle Protection Program.
The following organizations received grants for their approved projects for the 2024-2025 cycle:
- Florida Atlantic University: Potential role as endocrine disruptors of chemicals associated with plastic
- The Florida Aquarium: Expanding Permanent Rehabilitation Capacity at The Florida Aquarium
- Florida Atlantic University: Investigating the environmental factors influencing movement patterns of nesting leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea)
- Sea Turtle Conservancy: Addressing Barriers to Lighting Compliance Through Targeted Outreach
- North Captiva Sea Turtle Foundation: North Captiva Sea Turtle Foundation Monitoring and Rescue Vehicle
- Zoo Miami Foundation: Hatchling-Juvenile Holding System
- Sea Turtle Conservancy: Inspiring Sea Turtle Conservancy Action Ambassadors
- Mote Marine Lab: Submeter units for more accurate nest GPS location in the Gulf
- Inwater Research Group: Amigos de Las Tortugas: Empowering Conservation Ambassadors in Hispanic Communities
- Loggerhead Marinelife Center: Endoscopy Equipment for Sea Turtles
- University of Florida – Whitney Lab: Expanding Capacity for Sea Turtle Rehabilitation in Northeast Florida
- City of Miami Beach: Flip the Switch Phase II
- Loggerhead Marinelife Center: Endoscopy Equipment for Sea Turtles
- Brevard Zoo: Sea Turtle Healing Center Diagnostic Imaging Equipment
- Sea Turtle Care and Conservation Specialists: Sea Turtle Care and Conservation Workshop Pilot Project
- Gulfarium C.A.R.E. Foundation: UTV for Incidental Hook and Line Capture Response at Local Fishing Pier
- University of Central Florida: Bringing the UCF Marine Turtle Research Group Database into the 21st Century
- Gulf Specimen Marine Lab: Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory’s Turtle Transport Vehicle
- Coastal Connections, Inc.: Sea Turtle Biologist-in-Training: Program Expansion
- Gulfarium C.A.R.E. Foundation: Gulfarium Hydraulic Exam Table
- Hobe Sound Nature Center, Inc.: A Hatchling’s Race for Survival – An Immersive VR Experience
- Navarre Beach Sea Turtle Conservation Center: Changing Hearts and Minds: Sea Turtles Are Our Thing!
- Clearwater Marine Aquarium: Necropsy Room Renovations for Clearwater Marine Aquarium
- University of Florida: Understanding genetic structure and population history of leatherback sea turtles in Florida
- Florida State University: The elusive sex: insights into the spatial ecology of male sea turtles and opportunities to inform their conservation – Year 1
- Loggerhead Marinelife Center: Investigating clutch frequency and inter-nesting habitat for a globally important loggerhead rookery: Year 5
- Zoo Miami Foundation: Patient Care Equipment
- Florida State Parks Foundation: Gaining Traction on Sea Turtle Conservation
- Sea Turtle Trackers, Inc.: Utility Transport Vehicle for St. Pete Beach
- Florida State University: Foraging ecology and diet selection of sympatric marine turtles in the Gulf
- Loggerhead Marinelife Center: Expansion and Continuation of the Sea Turtle Protection Zone in Palm Beach County