Before the arctic cold front made it through the Coastal Bend over the weekend, animal control and wildlife institutions across the region moved their animals out of the elements and asked residents to be on the watch for wildlife affected by the extreme cold, like cold-stunned sea turtles. They now ask for particular attention over these next few days.
“Over the weekend, we made it through the coldest part of Sunday and into Sunday night, everything held really well,” Texas State Aquarium CEO President Jesse Gilbert said.
He said it was fortunate there was no freezing precipitation Saturday night going into Sunday.
“We got one more night to get through a really intense cold, and then we should be out of the danger zone for right now,” Gilbert said.
Two cold-stunned sea turtles were rescued and taken to the Texas Sealife Center on Padre Island. Gilbert anticipates more reports to come in over Monday and Tuesday.
“The water didn't get cold as quickly as we thought it was going to so that's a bonus,” Amanda Terry, Director of Rehabilitation at Texas Sealife Center, said.“[Sunday night] was supposed to be the worst night, and [Monday’s] the worst day, potentially . . . so if we can get sun and above 50 degree weather, that would be ideal.”
Terry said, with another cold front potentially on the way, they will likely not release the sea turtles back into the wild just yet.
“We got to play it by ear because the water has got to be warm enough, and a rising trend, so we don't just put them out there and cold-stun them again," she said.
Wendy Knight, CEO of Sea Turtle Inc. in South Padre Island, said they received their first report of cold-stunned sea turtles at about 7:30 a.m. Monday.
To report injured, sick or dead turtles anywhere on the Texas coast, you can call the coast-wide sea turtle hotline: 1-866-TURTLE-5.
