A couple of weeks before the date of this post, a friend shared a conservation event that ended up making for an interesting blog post idea. On Friday, Feb. 12, Sea Turtle, Inc.--a sea turtle rescue and conservation organization in South Padre Island, Texas--made a Facebook post announcing the cold weather and announcing their expectation of cold-stunned sea turtle arrivals over the next few days.
In the occasional colder Texas winters, when ocean temps drop to about 50 Fahrenheit or below, the sea turtles of the area become susceptible to hypothermia, or "cold stun". Cold-stunned sea turtles are rendered unable to move from the cold; they may drown for inability to lift their heads above water to breathe air, or they are washed ashore where the cold air can also kill. After rescue, a cold-stunned sea turtle usually requires at least a few days to warm up and regain mobility again before it can be rehabilitated or released.
Usually, South Padre Island's ocean water averages in the mid to high 60's for February. This was one of those colder winters--but this particular 2021 winter was vastly more difficult than anyone expected, eventually gaining national attention with record-breaking cold temperatures and the largest sea turtle cold-stunning event in Texas' history.
The photo shared in the abovementioned post: link below, Use permission granted by Sea Turtle, Inc. marketing manager.
On February 14, just two days after their initial post, the first three cold-stunned sea turtles were brought into the facility and photographed. They posted the photo on Facebook to alert community members and share their 24/7 rescue line (image and link below). They expected about ten more to arrive soon. Just three hours later, around noon, they were expecting over 50 rescued turtles to be housed in the clinic. After 6 PM, they had rescued 142 sea turtles.
Use permission granted by Sea Turtle, Inc. marketing manager.
The next morning, February 15, they made an emergency post on Facebook. Their facility lost power since 2 AM that morning and their heating resources had been exhausted, and so, they asked for the help of any individuals and businesses in their region with spare generators. By 11 AM, they reached max capacity and began sending other cold-stunned sea turtle arrivals to the city's Convention Center and Visitors Bureau. By 1 PM, they began organizing an emergency command station at the Convention Center. Their power was still out and their turtles were in critical condition from lack of electrical heating potential. By 3:30, volunteers were still picking up turtles and needing additional tarp, medical tape, food, and water. Some volunteers had been out since 6 PM that day in the winter cold. At 5:09 PM, they passed 500 cold-stunned sea turtles and were still out of power. At 11 PM, they had over 1,700 cold-stunned sea turtles between the two facilities! Staff, volunteer workers, and the community had all become highly involved in donating much-needed supplies, time, and hands-on critical care for the sea turtles.
On February 16 at 3:49 PM, they were well beyond 2,500 turtles and still without power. One comment shared by Sea Turtle, Inc. included that it takes several days for the sea turtles to get out of hypothermic shock. This is what allowed, and actually made ideal, for the turtles to be placed in tight quarters. The next morning at 10:40 AM, they posted a video thanking SpaceX--because that morning, the aerospace company had come to Sea Turtle, Inc. with a commercial generator large enough to power and heat their education facility, residence center, and sea turtle hospital.
Sea turtles filling up the city's Convention Center and Visitors Bureau while the city's power grid was offline. Use permission granted by Sea Turtle, Inc. marketing manager.
On February 18th, Sea Turtle, Inc. reached capacity for volunteers. The Today Show featured the sea turtle rescue operations still underway in Texas, and the executive director of Sea Turtle, Inc. thanked the community for their immense support, and the rescue facilities closed to the public for the professionals on site to work exclusively with the sea turtles and ensure the best recovery possible.
By February 20th, they surpassed 5,000 cold-stunned sea turtle patients, and in a 24-hour effort from February 20th to the morning of the 21st, Sea Turtle, Inc. released more than 2,200 cold-stunned turtles back into the Gulf of Mexico. The corporation still had much to do, but this event marked the beginning of the end of their massive and greatly successful rescue effort in the largest cold-stunning event of Texas' history. Also aiding the overarching sea turtle rescue, rehabilitation, and release efforts were governmental agencies such as the National Marine Fisheries Service and the National Park Service of South Padre Island National Seashore.
Part of my blog's intention is not only to educate on marine science topics, but also to raise funds for my career development and for corporations like the one in this blog post. Please consider supporting me with $1 a month or a single donation directly to Sea Turtle, Inc. (see my "Support" page and the link included below)!
To donate to Sea Turtle, Inc.:
Resources:
Sea Turtle, Inc.'s Facebook Page:
An explanation of what happens when sea turtles get cold-stunned:
Typical ocean temps for South Padre Island, Texas:
The turtles released back into the ocean off a slide by boat:
Various news sources that pitched in on this story:
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