Posted on: 2018-10-12 10:30:29
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Turtle news we found interesting this week.
Baby sea turtles & baby western pond turtles. With video!
Also turtle rescues, turtle releases, and a couple more almost ready to go.
There’s encouraging conservation news for river terrapins, Bell’s turtles, and others. But sad news about stolen turtles & crushed turtles.
Plus more.
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Recent Box Turtle News
We didn’t find any box turtle news this week, so enjoy this pretty Eastern boxie posing for the camera instead.
Recent U. S. Turtle News
Baby sea turtles have a tough time in storms, but with a little care they’ll be back at sea soon. A couple of bigger turtles will be going home soon too. Plus more.
But first, if you live in Grand Isle County, Vermont …
Volunteers needed in North Hero: It’s time to clean up spiny softshell turtle nesting beaches for next year. All willing volunteers welcome on October 27!
Baby turtles news
Storms wash tiny turtles back to shore: The little guys live in the seaweed off shore, but storms sweep the seaweed and its little inhabitants back to land. The babies spend a few weeks in rehab before heading back out to their home. Includes video. (Florida)
Meet the Oregon Zoo’s western pond turtles: The 15 little hatchlings arrived at the zoo a couple of weeks ago. In this video we get to see them explore their new home.
Sea turtle release … and almost ready for release
After 10 months the spear wounds have healed: The green sea turtle showed up off Guam last December. The wounds were deep & recovery slow, but on Wednesday the eager turtle took off like a rocket to the sea. Includes video.
Squirt is almost ready to go home: The 1-year-old loggerhead sea turtle didn’t quite make it out of the nest last year. So little Squirt has spent a year at the Sea Turtle Nursery getting big(ger) & strong. And now it’s time to head out into the big world.
Gingersnap will head home on Monday: The loggerhead sea turtle has more than doubled in weight since arriving at the Virginia Living Museum. Gingersnap will make a couple more feeding appearances for guests before release time.
Other Turtle News
Only turtle-friendly lighting on Anna Maria Island? That’s the plan, if city leaders and Florida Power and Light all agree.
Serving and protecting … without getting too close: Officers get creative to move a snapping turtle off the road to safety while keeping themselves safe too.
Turtle can help clean up the Chicago River? Well, indirectly, but yes that’s what the Forest Preserve District of Cook County is hoping. If the turtles will move into newly restored areas, that can encourage more support for more restoration. And restoring native plants to forest preserve land can help lower the amount of sewage that makes it into the river. Voila! Turtles clean up the river. 😊 See video here.
Recent International Turtle News
There’s some good news in the area of turtle conservation work. But also more evidence that more work is needed. Also a plastic spoon & microplastics both threaten turtles, although in different ways. Plus stolen turtles, rescued turtles, and more.
Turtle rescues
Plastic spoon almost causes turtle to drown: Luckily some fishermen saw it & called for help. Includes photo. (Mexico)
Turtle rescued from open gravesite: It’s not the first time a turtle has fallen into one of these holes at this cemetery. So far they’ve been lucky & have been rescued. Includes video. (St. Lucia)
Policeman gently rescues a tortoise in the road: Includes 2 photos … one of the animal in the road & then of the officer holding it gently. 💚 And apparently this simple, kind little act has gone viral! (Greece)
Turtle conservation stories
Good news for Cambodia’s Southern River Terrapins: All the animals released last year have survived. One even traveled about 100km to a different river. They’re far from saved, but this is encouraging.
Sea turtle populations around Pakistan growing: Recent estimates of green and Olive Ridley turtle numbers suggest conservation efforts have been paying off.
The ‘turtle woman’ of the Maldives is on a mission: She has set up a turtle rescue center and wants to expand the program. She’s originally from London and splits her time between there and the Maldives.
Tracking tagged turtles around UAE: By tracking turtles we can see the turtles don’t necessarily stay near where they were caught and tagged. So local conservation efforts aren’t enough. Countries need to all work together. Read more here.
Turtles Forever … hopefully: The ‘Turtles Forever’ project has been surveying Bell’s Turtles, protecting nests, and collecting other data. The goal is to increase the endangered turtles’ chances of long-term survival.
Turtle releases
Happy travels to Margaret: The very large and old (80+ years!) green sea turtle needed three years to recover, but she’s now back on the Great Barrier Reef. And apparently a British knight helped send her off in style!
Locals pay foreigners to leave the turtle they caught: It shouldn’t have been necessary, of course, but the locals want to protect their turtles. And they were willing to pay for the men’s damaged net rather than let them take the turtle. (Nigeria)
Dangers to turtles
Will industrial project harm turtle nesting beaches? Opponents fear the answer is yes, but government panels are recommending approval of the projects. Approval is supposed to come with conditions to protect turtle safety, but will it be enough? (India)
It’s not just big plastic pieces threatening sea turtles: Tiny plastic bits mixed in the sand can affect the success of nests. And change the temperature, which changes the number of males & females born. And these microplastics even show up on relatively remote beaches.
Too many dead turtles on one road: Cars ran over at least 11 on one short stretch of road. And even worse, some may have been deliberate. Warning: Includes photos. (Western Australia)
Other turtle stories
Student arrested selling star turtles: And apparently it’s not the 1st time. 🙁 (Eastern India)
Tiny giant turtles stolen in Galápagos islands: The baby giant turtles lived in a breeding facility with poor security. So someone walked in one night & walked out with 123 of the little critters. 🙁
Red eared slider invading South Australia? It may not be quite that bad. Yet. But officials in one town have asked residents to look out for one spotted on the street recently. These turtles are notorious for outcompeting native species for resources.
Someone left a green turtle head on the beach? Sadly, yes. Why must people do these things? Warning: Includes photo. (Curaçao)