MIAMI, May 3 (UPI) -- Sea turtles are nesting earlier than they were 15 years ago and scientists in Florida say that might be another sign of global warming.
Other recent signs of global warming have been earlier nesting by British magpies and early blooming of New York wildflowers, the Orlando Sentinel reported Monday.
University of Central Florida scientists who track nesting habits in Brevard County, Fla., said they have found that loggerhead turtles are nesting 10 days earlier than they did in 1989.
"It's another fingerprint, a harbinger. It's another indication that nature is responding to the climate," said associate biology professor John F. Weishampel.
The study analyzed nesting in the county from 1989 and 2003.
The 25-mile stretch between Patrick Air Force Base and Sebastian Inlet in Brevard County is the site of about 25 percent of the nation's loggerhead turtle nests. Nesting officially started Saturday.
