MARATHON, Florida Keys — Twenty critically endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles arrived in the subtropical Florida Keys Thursday to warm up and receive treatment after suffering “cold stunning” in the waters off New England.
Found stranded as a result of the condition, the turtles were rescued and subsequently flown to Florida Keys Marathon International Airport, arriving Thursday afternoon in banana boxes from a temporary holding center at the New England Aquarium.
“We have these critically endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtles to warm up here in the Florida Keys, just like the visitors come to the Florida Keys to do,” said Turtle Hospital manager Bette Zirkelbach. “Weather moves in, the cold water and cold air, these poor little turtles get trapped by the shape of Cape Cod.”
“Cold stunning” is a hypothermic reaction that occurs when sea turtles are exposed to cold water for a prolonged time. It typically causes them to stop eating and swimming, Zirkelbach said.
“Sea turtles are ectothermic,” she said. “What that means is they take on the temperature of the air and the water surrounding them.
“Anything below 50 degrees Fahrenheit can become a mortality event for a sea turtle,” she added.
Zirkelbach said the rescue, transportation to the Keys, rehabilitation and release is a result of many entities and people.
“It’s a massive effort combined with many organizations that rescue these turtles right at the site,” she said. “There’s an incredible organization, ‘Turtles Fly Too,’ where volunteer pilots fly these turtles down to warmer places.”
The pilots donate their aircraft, fuel and time.
“Turtles Fly Too” dedicated Thursday’s rescue mission to the legacy of Bonnie Freeman — lost to acute lymphoblastic leukemia at age 12 — and her family, who founded Stop Children’s Cancer together after Bonnie’s diagnosis.
Kemp’s ridley sea turtles are the most endangered of turtle species, Zirkelbach said. The “cold-stunned” turtles that are critically ill will be tested to discover whether they have pneumonia, infections or other ailments, with their treatment and rehabilitation period determined by test results.
“At the Turtle Hospital in the Florida Keys, we are lucky that it’s already warm here, so not only will we warm them up, but we’re gonna deal with all the things that happen from those cold temperatures,” she said.
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