Dry Tortugas

Dry Tortugas, also Tortugas, group of ten coral keys or islets, southern Florida. They lie in the Gulf of Mexico west of Key West. Among the principal islets, all of which are low and partially covered with mangrove bushes, are Bush Key, Loggerhead, East Key, and Garden Key. Garden Key islet is the site of Fort Jefferson National Monument. A marine biological station, maintained by the Carnegie Institute of Washington, is on Loggerhead Key. The entire group is a bird sanctuary, established by the federal government in 1908.