Florida sea turtle lighting: what a beach house may shine toward the sand

The short version

• Light the place people need to walk. Keep that light off the sand. A bulb on private property can still break a beach-lighting rule when the glow reaches the beach.
• Florida has no single household lights-out time. Section 161.163 tells the state to mark nesting coasts and to write guidelines. Cities and counties adopt the ordinances.
• An amber or red bulb is only one part of the test. FWC's wildlife-lighting criteria also require a low mount and a shield that hides the lamp. Filters and color-changing bulbs do not pass that test.
• Indoor light counts when it reaches the beach. Close a covering that actually blocks the glow. A sheer curtain is not that covering.
• November 1 is not a statewide on-switch. Sanibel enforces beachfront lighting rules all year. Fort Myers Beach can extend its season when turtles are still nesting.

This page uses the state statute, FWC's lighting pages, and three local rules that were opened on November 6, 2026: Sanibel, Fort Myers Beach, and Walton County. Other coastal towns are in FWC's ordinance directory. The city or county office confirms the current rule for the address.

The state writes guidelines. The town writes the rule.

Section 161.163, Florida Statutes, says the Department of Environmental Protection shall adopt a rule that designates coastal areas used, or likely to be used, by sea turtles for nesting. The department shall also adopt guidelines for local government regulations that control beachfront lighting to protect hatching sea turtles.

That section does not set a statewide hour for porch lights, and it does not pick a bulb for every rental. FWC explains the protection and keeps the directory of local ordinances. The model lighting ordinance in Chapter 62B-55 is a model for local governments. A model, or a product certification, is not permission for one house.

Three kinds of requirements can apply to the same building:

A county rule can apply differently inside a city. Being across the street, upstairs, or behind another building is not an automatic exemption. Fort Myers Beach covers every property in town whose light can be seen from the beach, beachfront or not. In Walton County, if any portion of a lighted structure sits inside the Wildlife Conservation Zone, the entire structure is in the zone.

Low, long, and shielded

FWC's wildlife-lighting criteria say a fixture or lamp must meet all three:

• Low. Mount the fixture as low as possible. Use the lowest wattage or lumen output the task needs.
• Long. Use long-wavelength light greater than 560 nanometers, with no wavelengths below 560 nanometers. Amber, orange, or red LEDs can meet that test. The criteria say to do it without filters, gels, or lenses.
• Shielded. The fixture must meet or exceed full cutoff, meaning no light above a 90-degree plane. The lamp or glowing lens must not be directly visible.

FWC's beachfront lighting page states the long-wavelength rule as 560 nanometers or greater. The certification criteria are the stricter of the two: greater than 560, and absent below 560. Use the criteria when you are checking a product against FWC's certified list. Use the local ordinance when you are checking the house.

Walton County's ordinance uses a different wavelength line. It defines long wavelength as light predominantly greater than 580 nanometers, and that definition names some amber and red lamps and some bug lamps. That is Walton's text. It is not FWC's certification test, and it does not erase Walton's other rule: the point source must not be visible from the beach, and the light must not illuminate the beach or the dune seaward of the primary dune crest.

Check the exact lamp and fixture on FWC's certified list, then check the local rule. A seller's "turtle-friendly" label, or a warm-white appearance, does not approve the installation. The fixture's height, shield, aim, and the bulb that is actually in it all count.

Local seasons that were opened

These three are published local rules, checked November 6, 2026. They are not a directory of every Florida beach. Where two official documents disagree, both are listed. The city or county confirms which one applies to the address.

For a town that is not in this table, start with FWC's ordinance directory, then ask that city or county for the current dates and the map of the regulated area. Do not copy a neighbor's calendar onto a different address.

Indoor lights count when they reach the beach

A living-room lamp can light the sand without ever leaving the house. FWC's lighting page says white interior lights are often brighter than the exterior lights, and it tells owners to close window coverings, turn lights off when leaving the room, move lamps away from windows, and use shades instead of exposed bulbs.

Sanibel says one unshielded interior fixture, in a single beachfront home or condo, can disrupt hatchlings. Close the curtains or blinds, or turn the lights off, even when the glass is sold as turtle glass.

Fort Myers Beach's code says interior lighting shall not be directly, indirectly, or cumulatively visible from any portion of the beach during nesting season. The town's sea turtle page tells hosts to use a covering, and it points to blackout shades. A sheer curtain is not the covering those pages describe. After dark, look from a place you may lawfully stand. Do not cross the dune or walk into a marked nesting area to take the picture.

What 45 percent light transmission means

Some rules talk about glass that lets through 45 percent or less of visible light. That figure is the share of light that passes through the glass. It is not the share the glass blocks.

• Walton County's ordinance defines tinted glass as an inside-to-outside visible-light transmittance of 45 percent or less. On new coastal construction in the Wildlife Conservation Zone, tinted glass goes on all windows and glass doors. For existing buildings, the ordinance encourages tint, moving lamps, opaque coverings, and turning off unused lights so interior light does not reach the beach. Documented disorientation from that interior light can be a state or federal wildlife violation.
• Fort Myers Beach's code uses the same 45 percent definition. For new construction and for replacement windows seaward of the Coastal Construction Control Line, the code requires that 45 percent glass and a window covering. For existing interior light, the code's listed techniques include film that reduces transmittance to 15 percent, or the darkest tint that is practicable, plus opaque shades. The town's sea turtle page states 45 percent and a window covering as the glass rule, and a later tip on that same page says 30 percent or less. Ask the town which number applies to the building. Tint alone does not finish the job. The code still requires the interior light to stay off the beach view during the season.
• FWC's lighting guidelines describe 45 percent or less inside-to-outside transmittance as one way to keep interior light off a nesting beach, and they say darker tint has been used. That is guidance. The local ordinance and any permit on the building control the address.

Glass sold for hurricanes, energy savings, or daytime privacy can still pass a lot of light at night. Read the visible-light transmittance for that exact glass, then follow the local covering rule.

Lights around a beach house

Porch, balcony, and stair lights

A useful light shows the step and hides the bright source from the beach. FWC says to mount it low, use a long-wavelength lamp, and shield the bulb. Aiming an exposed flood down a little can still leave the lamp, or a bright reflection, visible. Have the whole installation checked against the local rule.

Security lights and camera floods

FWC says a light that is needed for safety should be modified so it meets the lighting rules. Turning off a required entrance light is not the fix, and turtle protection is not a reason to leave an entrance dark. Shield it, lower it, use the right lamp, or replace the fixture. Include motion lights in the night check. They are off during a daytime walk-through, then they come on when someone crosses the sensor. Walk the detection area after dark, from a lawful spot, and see where the beam goes.

String lights, landscape uplights, and solar lights

FWC's lighting page says not to use decorative lighting, such as runner lights or uplighting, where it is visible from the beach. A short bulb in a long string is still a row of visible lamps. A solar cell does not change the test. If the lamp shines or the wall glows, it is still light. Walton's ordinance exempts traditional holiday lights used outside nesting season. During the season, that exemption is not in the ordinance. On Sanibel, the beachfront lighting limit runs all year.

Pools and reflected glow

The lamp does not have to point at the sand. FWC says pool light reflects off the water and adds to the glow. Its lighting page describes locking pool lights on an amber or red color during nesting season, and using vegetation as a screen. A colored pool setting is not, by itself, a certified installation. Walton's general standards name pools among the exterior lights that must stay invisible from the beach and must not illuminate it. Ask the local reviewer how that pool is supposed to be controlled.

Beach-access walkways

Use the lighting that was approved with the walkover. Fort Myers Beach limits beach-access lighting to the part of the structure landward of the dune, and it says that light must not be visible from the beach. Walton County allows lighting seaward of the primary dune crest only on commercial property and on neighborhood common-access walkovers, with shielded long-wavelength lamps that do not directly illuminate the beach, and only when the lights turn off after the person leaves. An added rope light or a flood clipped on after construction is a new light. It needs its own check.

What an owner or a renter should do

Start before the first rental of the season. The same steps help a home that is not rented.

• Name the jurisdiction. City, or unincorporated county. Get the dates, the nighttime hours, and any coastal permit conditions on that building. FWC's directory is the map. The local office confirms the current text.
• Look at night. Turn on the lights residents and guests actually use, including motion lights. From a place you may lawfully be, look for exposed bulbs, glowing windows, bright walls, and light on the sand. Stay off the dune and out of marked nesting areas.
• Keep a lighting record. Save the fixture models, the lamp specifications, the permits, and a note of each bulb change. A spare white bulb in a carefully chosen fixture puts the problem back.
• Make the rule easy for a guest. Coverings that cover the whole opening, labels on the switches, a short note by the beachfront door, and a number to call. A long ordinance in a welcome binder is harder to use than one paragraph beside the door. Rental rules in general are on the Florida vacation rental page.

Walton County's ordinance is specific about notices. Property owners who remit tourist development bed taxes for a property inside the Wildlife Conservation Zone must post the county's signs in common areas and give renters printed information about the ordinance. The county supplies those materials. That duty is Walton's. It is not a statewide rental form.

Who has to fix the light

Walton's ordinance says an owner violates it by failing to bring exterior lights into compliance, or by prohibited acts the owner commits or commits through a tenant. The county's flyer puts responsibility on the owner, the property manager, and the occupant. A rental agreement does not erase the ordinance. A guest should follow the house instructions, leave approved fixtures in their normal setting, and tell the manager about a missing curtain or a flood that stays on. Leave shared condo lighting and the neighbor's fixtures alone.

That box is sample house wording. It is not the ordinance. Put the local dates and hours in the blank the note points to.

Flashlights, parties, and nest stakes

A red flashlight is not a statewide pass

Fort Myers Beach's sea turtle page says no flashlights on the beach at night during nesting season. FWC's Labor Day 2026 guidance says to avoid a flashlight of any color, a cell-phone light, or a flash photo after dark on the beach. When a nesting turtle or hatchlings are there, FWC says not to use flashlights, flash photography, or video lights. Sanibel's sea turtle page says to avoid flashlights, lanterns, and flash photography, and it mentions a red cover only as a way to make a light less disruptive. A red filter does not cancel a local ban, and it does not cancel FWC's instruction to leave the turtle in the dark.

Give nesting turtles and hatchlings at least 50 feet. If the animal changes what it is doing, you are too close. If the permitted lighting is too dark to walk safely, go in daylight or with an authorized guide.

Weddings, parties, and work lights

A booking, a planner, or a work schedule does not replace the lighting permission.

• Fort Myers Beach's code says special-event or construction activity on or next to the beach needs a town permit, and it may also need a state permit. Lighting for a special event that would be visible from any portion of the beach shall not be authorized at nighttime during nesting season.
• Walton County allows a special event that needs temporary lighting on or near the beach only when the organizer has a special-event permit from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and follows every condition on that permit.
• Sanibel's beach-standards sheet says a beach event during the nesting seasons printed on that sheet has no lights on the beach, or visible from the beach, from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Before you order an illuminated arch, a string-light package, a spotlight, or a nighttime ceremony on the sand, get the local approval. For construction, ask which work lights, hours, and shields are permitted.

No nest stakes does not mean the lights can stay on

These ordinances cover a beach, a zone, or any light that reaches the beach. They do not wait for a stake beside one nest. Walton's zone is the 750-foot strip. Sanibel's beachfront lighting limit is year-round. Fort Myers Beach covers light visible from any portion of the beach. Artificial light can also keep a female from nesting. Waiting until eggs are in the sand misses that part of the rule.

November 1 is not a statewide on-switch

Sanibel's sea turtle page says the beachfront lighting ordinances stay in effect outside the main nesting months. Fort Myers Beach can extend the season when nesting continues. FWC's September 3, 2026 holiday notice said nesting season was still underway and hatchlings were still emerging. Follow a local extension. A date on a calendar is not permission to disturb a turtle.

Reporting a light, and a turtle in trouble

For a problem light, call the city or county office that enforces that ordinance. Give the address, the time, and a plain description of the light. Sanibel publishes Code Enforcement at 239-472-4136 and Natural Resources at 239-472-3700. Walton County publishes Code Enforcement at 850-622-0000. Fort Myers Beach takes reports through its request form. Stay off someone else's property. Do not change their fixtures. A photo from a lawful spot can explain the problem. Keep the flash off if a turtle is there.

Enforcement is local. Each ordinance has its own process. There is no single statewide lighting penalty to print on this page.

Questions

Is there one lights-out time for every Florida beach house?

No. Section 161.163 tells the state to write lighting guidelines. Cities and counties write the rules for each beach. Fort Myers Beach defines nighttime as sunset to sunrise. Sanibel's campaign, After 9, it's turtle time, tells people to close curtains and turn lights off after dark. A clock time from one town does not reset another town's rule.

Does an amber or red bulb make the fixture legal?

No. FWC's wildlife-lighting criteria require the fixture to be mounted low, to use long-wavelength light greater than 560 nanometers with no light below 560 nanometers, and to hide the lamp. Filters, RGB bulbs, and color-changing bulbs do not meet those criteria. Walton County's ordinance uses its own definition, predominantly greater than 580 nanometers. The lamp, the fixture, and where it is aimed all have to fit the rule for that address.

Do indoor lights count?

Yes, when that light reaches the beach. Sanibel prohibits interior and exterior light from illuminating the beach, and it says to close the curtains even if the glass is tinted. Fort Myers Beach says interior light must not be visible from the beach during nesting season. Close a covering that blocks the glow, then look from a lawful spot outside after dark.

Can the beach lights come back on November 1?

No. Sanibel enforces its beachfront lighting ordinances year-round. Fort Myers Beach can extend nesting season when turtles are still active. November 1 is not a statewide permission to light the sand.

What if a hatchling is in a road or a parking lot?

Call FWC Wildlife Alert at 1-888-404-3922. Stay back, keep pets away, and do not pick the hatchling up or steer it with a flashlight. FWC says it is illegal to pick up hatchlings.

Sources

Checked November 6, 2026. Towns that were not opened are left to FWC's directory. Where a city page and a city code use different glass numbers, or two city documents use different season dates, both are on this page. The local office confirms which text applies to the address.

• Florida Statutes section 161.163, coastal areas used by sea turtles
• FWC, sea turtle protection ordinances directory
• FWC, model lighting ordinance, Chapter 62B-55 (PDF)
• FWC, wildlife lighting criteria
• FWC, certified wildlife lighting
• FWC, sea turtles and lights
• FWC, September 3, 2026 holiday notice for hatchlings
• FWC, what to do if you see a sea turtle
• City of Sanibel, sea turtles
• City of Sanibel, beach standards for special events (PDF)
• Sanibel Code section 126-1000, beachfront lighting
• Town of Fort Myers Beach, sea turtles
• Fort Myers Beach sea turtle conservation code (PDF)
• Walton County, wildlife lighting
• Walton County Ordinance No. 2009-03 (PDF)
• Walton County, wildlife lighting summary and nighttime inspection (PDF)

This Is Florida does not decide lighting rules or permits. Your city or county does.