As many families hit the road for spring break adventures this time of year, the South Carolina Aquarium headed south for their own unique road trip with five flippered passengers. Taking the “highway to health,” these rehabilitated sea turtles were en route to an exciting destination: back to the wild.
Croissant, Eggs, Hydrangea, Marmalade and Snowdrop are all juvenile green sea turtles that had undergone rehabilitation in the South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Care Center. Each of them was initially admitted for cold stunning — a phenomenon that occurs when water temperatures suddenly drop, simultaneously lowering the sea turtles internal body temperature to critical levels. Cold-stunned sea turtles often experience lethargy and buoyancy issues, leading to many of them stranding ashore and needing rehabilitative care.
This road trip marked a successful rehabilitation journey for each of these resilient little greens. Together, they were released into the warmer waters of Little Talbot Island State Park in Jacksonville, Florida on Wednesday morning.
Though the Aquarium waved farewell to these five little greens as they begin the next leg of their journey, more still remain in rehabilitative care. Spring Break is the perfect time to take a road trip to the South Carolina Aquarium to witness the incredible work being done to save sea turtles. Every visit to the Aquarium offers a unique opportunity to see a working hospital and support the rescue, rehabilitation and release of sick and injured sea turtles.
"Each chance we get to send sea turtles back out to the ocean is a proud moment for us," says Sea Turtle Care Center Manager Melissa Ranly. "It's a testament to the dedication of every entity that impacted these sea turtles along their respective road trips to release: the rescuers, SCDNR permitted transporters, staff, volunteers and Aquarium guests. Without each of them — and their shared commitment to sea turtle conservation — this work wouldn't be possible!"
For more information, visit scaquarium.org