The Department of Environment and Science has asked residents and visitors near the Capricorn Coast shoreline to turn out their lights at night.
The call follows a large number of post-hatchling flatback turtles being found dead or stranded in the region since the end of January.
The Department said the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, along with Team Turtle CQ Volunteers, were closely monitoring the situation.
“Two of the stranded turtles were recaptures from a monitoring program at Peak Island, indicating that the hatchlings are not all dispersing from the local area as expected,” the Department said in a statement.
“Monitoring of newly emerged hatchlings at Peak Island has shown that instead of heading directly seaward across the beach, the hatchlings are heading diagonally across the beach towards the Yeppoon Coast,” the Department said.
“There is a distinct possibility that the post-hatchling turtles leaving Peak Island are being attracted to the inshore coastal waters of Keppel Bay by the sky glow of the Yeppoon coast.”
The Department urged people living close to the coastline on the Capricorn Coast to turn off all unnecessary lights after 7:30pm during the hatchling season from February to March.
“On nesting beaches with nearby artificial lights, hatchlings can become disoriented, heading toward the artificial light instead of the ocean,” it said.
“Those that make it to the ocean can be lured back to the shore by strong, coastal lights, and the hatchlings can become exhausted, strand and die or become prey for birds,” it said.
