Cape Town – The Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation is calling on the public to assist it in rescuing sea turtle hatchlings that are washing up on beaches across the Western Cape.
The foundation is a non-profit and public benefit organisation founded by the Two Oceans Aquarium.
According to the foundation, the province is in “stranding season”, which happens after loggerhead turtles hatch, from March to June.
The aquarium said loggerhead turtles usually hatch on beaches in Northern KwaZulu-Natal and are carried south by the Agulhas current. Thanks to injury, dehydration and hypothermia, some of these hatchlings wash up on the beaches around the Western Cape.
However, this year’s stranding season started early.
The foundation’s Turtle Conservation Centre received the first hatchlings of the season late last month, it said.
Turtle Conservation Centre Manager Talitha Noble said that was why the foundation was calling on beach users to keep their eyes open for these tiny hatchlings.
“We encourage the public to call the Turtle Rescue Hotline to report stranded or distressed sea turtles on the Western Cape coast.
“The Turtle Network Co-ordinator will give you the information you need and co-ordinate efforts to get the turtle into the hands of trained veterinary staff at the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation Turtle Conservation Centre,” Noble said.
The centre works to rescue, rehabilitate and release the turtles back into the open ocean.
It has this advice for people who find sea turtles on a Western Cape beach:
- Do not put the turtle back in the water.
- Do not try to give the turtle water or food.
- Do not cover the turtle but try to provide it with some shade so that it is out of direct sunlight.
- Do not transport the turtle yourself as it is a TOP-listed species, which means you need a Threatened or Protected Species permit from the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment.
Instead, contact the Turtle Rescue Hotline at 0833001663 and follow the instructions provided.
