Over 500 baby sea turtles rescued after rare storm in South Africa
A powerful storm off the coast of South Africa has left the Two Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town stretched to its limits after over 500 baby sea turtles were washed ashore and rescued. The endangered loggerhead hatchlings should have been swimming in the ocean but were caught up in the turbulent weather.
The aquarium's Turtle Conservation Center is now rehabilitating around 400 of the stranded turtles, with the remaining spread across two other facilities. The center typically only receives around 100 babies during nesting season.
"My budgeting plans for the year have really gone out the window," said Talitha Noble-Trull, who heads the center. Each turtle will cost an estimated £400 to nurse back to health before release.
As well as the toll from the storm, the influx has highlighted another looming threat. Many turtles had ingested plastic pollution, providing stark evidence of the plastics crisis in our oceans. "These turtles are coming at us with a message. They're shouting it at us. That our oceans are not a safe place for turtles," Noble-Trull warned.
Source: ABC
