WELLFLEET, Mass. (AP) - Seven cold-stunned Kemp’s ridley sea turtles have been rescued from Cape Cod beach.
The turtles were found on beaches from Eastham to Brewster Tuesday by Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary volunteers, the Cape Cod Times reported. An eighth Kemp’s ridley turtle was found dead at Race Point in Provincetown.
The sanctuary’s sea turtle stranding coordinator, Karen Dourdeville, said that strong winds over the past day likely pushed the turtles ashore.
“These sea turtles were probably slowing down since the bay’s water temperature is now 55 degrees,” Dourdeville said. “When they get cold enough, sea turtles will stop feeding and swimming. Two or three days of strong winds can help blow them ashore where we’re able to rescue them.”
In addition to the critically endangered Kemp’s ridley turtles, green sea turtles and loggerheads also experience cold-stunning. Cold-stunning occurs when animals become trapped in the hook shape of the Cape and are prevented from migrating to warmer waters.
Rescued turtles are transported to the New England Aquarium’s Animal Care Center in Quincy and the National Marine Life Center in Buzzards Bay where they are treated, rehabilitated and eventually released.
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