All information is important to us and helps us to learn more about these marine animals. Up to 10,000 loggerhead sea turtles live in the Bay during the summer. Turtles start to arrive in the Bay when the water temperature approaches 66 degrees, and migrate out of the Bay to wintering grounds off the Florida coast when temperatures drop to about 60 degrees. The Bay is also a summer feeding ground for both adult and juvenile loggerhead turtles. Kemp's ridleys are the second most abundant sea turtle in the Bay.
Ridleys are the most endangered of all sea turtles.
They usually strand during their migration into and out of the Bay. Ridleys forage in the shallow waters around the margins of the Bay while loggerheads most often use deeper water, near channels. Green and leatherback turtles are occasionally found in Bay waters as well.