Hey.  I’ve been thinking alot about climate change recently, the strange weather patterns we have been seeing, and I really think there is no way to overestimate the magnitude of the problems we face.  I am especially concerned about how wildlife have become entangled with these unprecedented, human-initiated changes.  Hurricanes now come more frequently, and you may have heard about the big winter freeze in Texas in February.  Most of the news coverage of the freeze related to homes losing power and heat, and in some cases water.  I have relatives in Austin and San Antonio, and I live in Houston.  All three cities faced a few very cold and uncomfortable days with overnight lows below 20F.  In the end, the majority of us were without power for at least part of the time, but survived just fine and certainly became better educated about our power grid.

But what bothered me the most was seeing the effects the storm had on our wildlife.  Since May 21 is Endangered Species Day, I thought I would mention that there are 5 different types of turtles native to Texas, and all are either endangered or threatened.  It is estimated that the February freeze affected over 12,000 of these turtles up and down the Texas coast.  Turtles rely on ambient heat to regulate their body temperatures, and if the water is below 50F, the turtles become paralyzed.  This was the largest “cold stun” event that has occurred since the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) started tracking it in 1980.

In response to this threat, many South Padre Island residents volunteered to help, and nearly 5000 sea turtles were rescued from the frigid water.  Some turtles were taken to the nonprofit Sea Turtles Inc. facility, but they quickly ran out of space, so most were taken to the convention center, labeled by date, and put on tarps to warm up.  Some of the turtles were as small as saucers and a few were very large, “kiddie-pool-size turtles.”

Meanwhile, workers from the nearby SpaceX launch facility pitched in and lent the nonprofit an industrial generator.  Volunteers kept an eye on the turtles and applied ointment to keep their eyes lubricated.  Eventually the freeze lifted, and by February 20, most of the turtles were in decent shape and were released.

I am normally such a pessimist about the climate change situation, and sadly it is estimated that only about 35% of the 12,000-13,000 sea turtles in Texas survived the freeze, which is terribly low.  But this story did lift my heart a little bit, since obviously it would have affected the turtle population of Texas much more without the intervention of the kind-hearted volunteers.  I guess the good news is that South Padre Island residents responded to wildlife in danger, and that the on-going conservation efforts at the coast have been spotlighted.  Turtles Inc. is currently fundraising to try to replace tanks and other equipment that were damaged by the freeze.  If you are able to, please consider donating to this nonprofit organization.

Reference 1: Sea Turtles Inc., https://seaturtleinc.org.

Reference 2: Sea Turtles Inc. Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/SeaTurtleConservation/.

Reference 3: Alex Meier, ABC-13 Eye Witness News,”Thousands of ‘cold-stunned’ sea turtles rescued from Texas coast amid record-breaking deep freeze,” February 19, 2021, https://abc13.com/sea-turtle-rescued-texas-weather-cold-in/10348227/.

Reference 4: Daly, Natasha and Kadur, Sandesh, “Nearly 5,000 sea turtles rescued from freezing waters on Texas island,” National Geographic, February 19, 2021: https://nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/nearly-5000-sea-turtles-rescued-from freezing-waters-on-texas-island.

Reference 5: https://www.npr.org/2021/03/13/976105783/texas-cold-stun-of-2021-was-largest-sea-turtle-rescue-in-history-scientists-say.

Reference 6: Turtle Survival Alliance,  https://turtlesurvival.org/sea-turtle-rescue-effort-update-from-texas/

Reference 7:  Texas Parks and Wildlife Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/texasparksandwildlife/posts/10158200646603693.

Photo Credits 1, 3,and 4: Sea Turtles Inc., https://seaturtleinc.org

Photo Credit 2: Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, https://turtlesurvival.org/sea-turtle-rescue-effort-update-from-texas/.