Howell Park
Welcome to the Atlantic Beach Turtle Crawl! If this is the first turtle you’ve found, there are 23 others scattered throughout our park system, in places of historic significance, and even in some unexpected locations. If you’re up for a scavenger hunt to find every turtle on our Turtle Crawl, you can find a map HERE.
Two subspecies of Pond Slider live here in Florida, the native Yellow-bellied Slider and the invasive Red-eared Slider. Both are constantly competing for resources and space, creating an ecological imbalance. Pond sliders are omnivorous, although young ones eat more meat while adults eat more plants. The slider part of the name refers to how quickly they retreat into the water when they feel threatened. Pond Sliders prefer to live in calm waters with muddy bottoms where they can kick up sediment and escape.
Howell Park, located between Seminole Road and Sherry Drive, is a beautiful passive park with 2,500 feet of nature trails, streams, ponds and picnicking. Named after former Mayor William (Billy) S. Howell who was elected in 1956 and served for the next 27 years, this park has a large, mature tree canopy where many migrating birds and resident owls’ nest. It’s not hard to miss dozens of turtles that live in the ponds, they are often found sunning on fallen branches and the banks of Cypress tree lined ponds.