Posted on: 2018-04-27 10:30:25
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Interesting turtle stories we’ve found recently.
With spring finally here, it’s time to watch out for turtles … on roads, on beaches, in the water … Basically just keep your eyes out & don’t step on, run over, or otherwise hurt our turtle friends.
There’s also the usual round-up of rescues, pollution (especially plastic!), and conservation.
Also a grass fire uncovers a turtle mystery, the “sea turtle bible” arrives to help standardize care, and an update on Yoshi.
Plus much more.
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Recent Box Turtle News
No new box turtle news this week.
But this guy says good morning!
Recent U. S. Turtle News
It’s turtle time again! They’re coming out of hibernation, nesting, & crossing roads all over the place.
We also have a chocolately, caramel beer; elementary school students pledging to use fewer straws; and a snapping turtle rescued from a tiny tub.
Plus more.
It’s give turtles a break season
Georgia DNR asks you to watch out for sea turtles & manatees: The
warmer weather means more of both animals milling about. And they don’t understand boats & propellers. So it’s up to the humans to understand how to avoid hurting the animals.
And Maryland DNR reminds you to not abandon fishing gear: Already a blue heron has died & a snapping turtle injured.
Meanwhile Missouri asks you to avoid hitting turtles on the road: They’re on the move now after coming out of hibernation. And that warm asphalt feels like a nice basking spot.
A turtle traffic sign? Yes. But not for the turtles. For the humans, so they’ll
know how much turtle activity is happening that day. Very cool. And a great reminder for people to keep an eye out for turtles crossing the road! (Strathmere, New Jersey)
Rethinking dog-friendly beach area to protect sea turtles: Officials in Cocoa Beach are considering a smaller dog-friendly area than originally planned. Conservationists are worried about dogs disturbing nesting turtles, nests, and hatchlings. The new plan seems like a good compromise. (Florida)
Conservation news
Turtle beer to save the turtles? Yep! The Terrestrial Brewery Company describes its “I Love It When I Save the Turtles Porter” as a “chocolatery caramel and pecan porter with a hint of coffee.” For every pint sold $1 goes to help northeastern Ohio’s spotted turtle. They’re hoping to raise $5,000.
This elementary school is using fewer straws: And it’s all because one student made her classmates aware of how these plastic tubes hurt sea turtles and the environment. (Michigan)
Good news & bad news about sea turtle conservation: Protecting beaches during nesting season has been helping! Many sea turtle populations have increased, some dramatically. 💚 It’s not enough to get them off the endangered list, but it’s awesome progress. Unfortunately, sea turtles still face man-made dangers in the sea, including plastic pollution, fishing nets, and getting hit by boats. 😢
Arkansas may ban unlimited commercial turtle harvests: More and more states are recognizing that unlimited turtle collection is just not sustainable. Let’s hope Arkansas chooses to protect its turtle populations.
Miscellaneous turtle stories
Cold-stunned sea turtles finally heading home: Most of the turtles rescued during “cold-stunning season” have already gone home. But these needed a bit more time. Now they’ve had it and can go back to Florida & warmer waters. They’ll no doubt be swimming free by the time you read this!
163 dead turtles dumped in tall grasses: A fire burned away the grass & uncovered the turtles. Now officials are trying to find out what happened. 😢
No more nighttime turtle nest monitoring on Gulf Islands National Seashore: The National Park and the Florida FWCC have decided minimal (or no) human interaction is best for nesting turtles and hatchlings alike.
Human activity affecting snapping turtle sex ratios: And this time we’re not talking about climate change causing more females. Apparently agricultural sites make for cooler nests, which means more males. And mercury pollution somehow makes matters worse.
This was no life for a snapping turtle: A tiny, dirty tub and a diet of hot dogs. The poor thing was overweight & unhealthy. Video. (Texas)
Recent International Turtle News
This week we check in with a couple of released turtles, applaud amazing beach cleanup, and continue to wonder how our activities might be affecting the turtles, among other stories.
First a bit of fun
This turtle’s got attitude!: Recently we’ve seen sea turtles taking selfies & talking to divers. But this one was apparently less curious and more irritated. It’s giving the finger to the photographer!
Where are they now? Sea turtle edition
Pemba has made a couple of big loops since her release in March. SAAMBR hopes to track her for up to another 24 months.
Yoshi’s taking a leisurely swim off southern Angola. You might remember she spent more than 20 years at Two Oceans Aquarium before her release in December. Researchers are hoping her satellite tag will keep transmitting for about 3 years.
Turtle rescues
10,000 tortoises crammed into one house: You’ve probably seen this story, but in case you missed it … The poor things were living in their own waste, covering every inch of the floor. And a few in the bathroom tub, too. Most were alive but weak. 🙁
An Earth Day rescue: Earth Day was this leatherback’s lucky day. Sea Shepherd was retrieving illegal fishing nets when crew members realized the turtle was tangled in one. They were able to free it and the turtle swam away. (Includes video)
Stranded no more: The leatherback turtle most likely got stranded when the tide when out. But local fishermen helped pull & push her back to the water. 💚 Includes video.
Disoriented hatchlings gather under streetlamps: More than half the hatchlings from one nest ended up in a carpark. Lucky for them caring residents discovered them—even fishing them out of a drain hole—and got them to the sea where they belong. Sadly a few died before rescue. (Queensland, Australia)
Turtle eggs news … some good, some sad
5 years in jail for poaching turtle eggs? That’s one possible sentence a woman faces after authorities found her with 1000 turtle eggs. That’s 1.8 days for each little turtle life snuffed out before it could begin.
Record number of eggs collected along Puducherry coast: This past season officials and volunteers collected the most ever in 15 years: 11,500 eggs. And so far 7,000 babies have gone back to the sea. Now that’s the kind of egg collection we like to see.
They just needed a few more days … Unfortunately, it was not to be. Volunteers who had protected the eggs for a month are saddened by the high tides that broke the eggs.
It’s a 2nd mass nesting at Rushikulya beach: The 1st round of nests are hatching & the babies heading out to sea. Meanwhile, mamas are heading back in to lay more eggs. Apparently the last time this happened was 2006. (Odisha, India)
Plastic, plastic, plastic … and more beach pollution
Plastic pollution deforms sea turtle’s shell: Divers found the turtle somehow stuck inside some sort of plastic container/tube. And it must have been around the shell for a long time, because you can see how oddly shaped the shell is. Includes video and pictures.
Investigating microplastics in turtle guts: Scientists already know many dead sea turtles have plastic in their stomachs. But those are big pieces. Now they have a way to identify the tiny pieces that are usually harder to separate from the plant matter & sediment. So they can possibly learn more about how these microplastics affect the turtles (and other animals). (North Queensland, Australia)
He’s removed 13 million kg of waste from the beach by himself: Ok, not completely by himself. He had help. But not from any official agencies, which weren’t interested in the project. It took 3 years. But it was all worth it when he saw olive ridley hatchlings heading for the sea last month. They’re the first babies on that beach in about 20 years. 💚
Tilly the Turtle has a message for you: It’s “Don’t pollute the beaches!” A couple of weeks ago we share the story of Smokey, the turtle made of cigarette butts picked up on Hilton Head Island last year. Now there’s Tilly, another cigarette turtle spreading the message about beach pollution. There’s actually 8 Tillys out there, all created from cigarettes picked up on Dubai beaches.
Turtles in danger
What’s killing Seaforth’s sea turtles? Officials aren’t sure, but one resident said he has never seen this many before. (Queensland, Australia)
Did work on a lake cause turtle deaths?: Possibly. The local council responsible may not have taken the turtles into account when planning the work and lowering water levels. Lesson: Learn about the wildlife in the area when planning projects! (Victoria, Australia)
Is construction endangering Blanding’s turtles on Amherst Island? Maybe. At any rate, a local association is worried construction activity near wetlands will be bad for the turtles’ nesting season. (Ontario, Canada)
Miscellaneous turtle news
The “sea turtle bible” is here: It’s a comprehensive guide to sea turtle care, and it can help not just in treating individual turtles, but also in managing nest conservation, human interactions with turtles, and more.
4 green sea turtles celebrate “The Year of Zayed”at Bu Tinah Island: Ok, not exactly. But their capture, tagging, and release was part of the celebration. The late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan A Nahyan was passionate about conservation. And these turtles’ movements & DNA tissue samples will hopefully help researchers understand Abu Dhabi’s turtle populations better. (Abu Dhabi)