PHOTOS
"Off the Hook": Turtle Snagged at Fishing Pier Released after Rehab at Mote

Myrtle, a loggerhead sea turtle that was rescued after being hooked by multiple anglers at the Venice Pier, is released on April 8, 2011 after rehab by Mote Marine Laboratory (Credit: Mote Marine Laboratory).

• Stow your trash (especially cigarette butts and plastic) and recycle or dispose of it in a closed container on shore.
• Make sure your fishing line is in good condition to help reduce breakage.
• Use corrodible hooks. These hooks are designed to rust away and are less likely to harm sea turtles and other marine life.
  

PHOTOS
25^th Run Makes Great Strides for Sea Turtles


Runners hit the beach for the 5K race in Mote's 25th Annual Run for the Turtles (Credit: Mote Marine Laboratory).

More than 1,000 runners and walkers went the distance for sea turtle conservation during Mote’s Run for the Turtles, a major fundraiser that turned 25 on Saturday.

The Run, which took place April 2 at Siesta Public Beach, has provided key support for Mote’s Sea Turtle Conservation and Research Program, which is also celebrating a major milestone this year. 2011 marks the 30th year that Mote has coordinated sea turtle conservation along 35 miles of Sarasota County beaches. Mote scientists and more than 250 volunteers in Mote’s Sea Turtle Patrol monitor sea turtle nesting each day during nesting season, May through October. 

The Run, a joint effort between Mote, the  Manasota Track Club and Sarasota County Parks and Recreation, raises money to help Mote scientists study and protect sea turtles, which are considered threatened or endangered under federal law.

At the event, participants and scores of friends and supporters brightened up Siesta Public Beach before sunrise, starting with a warm-up workout with Mote mascot Shelley the Sea Turtle followed by a one-mile fun run/walk and a 5K run sanctioned by the Manasota Track Club.

Runners younger than 10 to older than 80 hit the beach, competing for overall fastest times for males and females in each race, and for the fastest times within each age group for the 5K. After the races, Mote honored Michael T. Martin, the event’s longtime sponsor who passed away in 2010. Dr. Tony Tucker, Manager of Mote’s Sea Turtle Program, presented Martin’s wife, Jean, with a painting by Linda Soderquist, artist and turtle patrol volunteer in a Charlotte County program.

“It’s because of people like Michael and Jean Martin, and all the runners who participate in the race each year, that Mote has a successful Sea Turtle Conservation and Research Program,” Tucker said. “Because sea turtles have such long lives, understanding their behaviors and protecting them really is a marathon and  we’re grateful to those who have supported our mission for more than 25 years.”                                                
                                                                        Chloe Bernardin hangs out with Mote Mascot
                                                                        Shelley the Sea Turtle during Mote's Run for the
                                                                        Turtles (Credit: Mote Marine Laboratory).

• Overall female winner: Heather Butcher, age 38, 18 minutes and 31 seconds.
• Overall male winner: Jim McQuade, age 41, 16:42 

 1-Mile Fun Run/Walk winners (exact times not recorded):

• Male winner: Alexander Zarris, age 13 
• Female winner: Anna Johnson, age 17

Read the results from each age category at: http://manasotatrackclub.sports.officelive.com/ResultsApril2011.aspx

Mote thanks the sponsors who made this event possible, including: Sen. and Mrs. Mike Bennett, Mote Scientific Foundation, Virginia Miller, New Balance Sarasota, Becky and Gordon Rose, Starbucks Coffee Company, Helmsley Sandcastle, Insurance & Benefits Consultants, Sarasota County Parks and Recreation, Z Entertainment, Bright House Networks, WWSB (ABC 7), SNN Local News 6, SRQ Media Group, Clear Channel Radio (107.9 WSRZ). 

Sunday
Eat Local: Sustainable Seafood          
If you’re all about eating local, try tasty fish from the farm next door!
You can enjoy Siberian sturgeon raised sustainably by Mote Marine Laboratory, along with other great dishes by top local chefs, during the Farm to Fork Dinner from 5:30-9 p.m. on Sunday, April 10 at Hi Hat Ranch. Farm to Fork is presented by Edible Sarasota, Suncoast Food Alliance and Michael’s on East. The event features Chef Al Massa, executive chef at Michael’s, and his staff. Mote’s Siberian sturgeon will be featured during the first course.

Click for full event details and registration information.

Broaden your culinary horizons at an “Elegant Decadence” seminar featuring Siberian sturgeon caviar sustainably grown by Mote. The event, at 2 p.m. on April 29 at Libby's Café and Bar, 1917 S. Osprey Ave., Sarasota, is presented by Florida Winefest & Auction.

Guests can try Oudinot champagnes presented by Frank Poot, learn caviar facts from Chef Francis Casciato and learn about local sturgeon and caviar production from Jim Michaels, manager of the Sturgeon Commercial Demonstration Program at Mote Aquaculture Research Park. The Park is an environmentally friendly fish farm where Mote staff raise Siberian sturgeon for meat and caviar more than 17 miles inland using recirculated water.

Mote caviar and other products will be available for order after the seminar.

The seminar will also feature SaborAM cheesecakes made with wine presented by Chef Anna Toole-Hutchens along with Cimarossa Cabernet of Howell Mountain, Calif., presented by Beth Pryor.

Tickets are $100 per person ($50 is tax deductible). For more information and tickets to Winefest events, please call 941-952-1109, 800-216-6199 or visit www.floridawinefest.org.

Mote Mascot Gilly the Shark loves the feel of a Fender guitar in his fins. Join Gilly to check out fabulous Fenders and much more at Sarasota Guitar Company’s Fender Feeding Frenzy, a free event from noon to 5 p.m. on April 30.
The event will take place at Sarasota Guitar Company, 4333 S. Tamiami Trail in Sarasota and will celebrate the Company’s recent expansion. A portion of the proceeds from sales at this event will benefit Mote Marine Laboratory’s Center for Shark Research. The Center is internationally-recognized for decades of groundbreaking shark research — and Gilly happens to be its biggest fan. Learn more at: www.mote.org/sharkresearch.
Guests at the event can enjoy free music by Sarasota’s Bryan Beardsley from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., free pulled-pork sliders from Nancy’s Bar-B-Q from noon until 2 p.m. and complimentary root beer from Shamrock Pub.

For more information about the event, please call 941-924-8321.
Learn more about Sarasota Guitar Company at www.sarasotaguitarcompany.com.

(Please credit photo to Nancy Cook, Sarasota Guitar Company)

Passionate about Oceans? Party with Mote on April 16 

• Reservations and sponsorship: Contact Stacy Alexander at 941-388-4441, ext. 509, or stacyalexander@mote.org.
• Can’t attend but still want to help?
  You can help Mote care for sick and injured sea turtles by supporting Mote's hospital through Gulf Coast Gives, a new Web site created by Gulf Coast, the Foundation of Community, to connect the needs of local charities with people in the community who want to help. Visit: https://www.gulfcoastgives.org/projects/45