Video: 12 old-stunned turtles warm up in Clearwater

Cold-stunned turtle recover in Clearwater

More than two dozen cold-stunned turtles were sent to Florida recently after being impacted by frigid temperatures in the northeast and 12 are recovering at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium.

CLEARWATER, Fla. - A dozen Kemp’s Ridley turtles are recovering at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium after being stunned by the frigid waters of New England.

Every year, hundreds of sea turtles are impacted by the cold temperatures in Cape Cod Bay, get stranded on the beaches and need medical attention.

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According to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, the cold-blooded reptiles rely on their environment to regulate their body temperatures. When water temperatures drop, their body temperature decreases, causing hypothermia and severe debilitation, metabolism slows down, and they lose the ability to feed or swim.

Credit: Florida Keys News Bureau via Storyful

The 12 turtles were part of a group of 32 cold-stunned sea turtles flown in a private jet with Turtles Fly Too, a nonprofit wildlife rescue organization.

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The other 20 turtles were flown to the Florida Keys Marathon International Airport in banana boxes, where they were taken in by staff at the Turtle Hospital in Marathon.

Credit: Florida Keys News Bureau via Storyful

"We’ve been able to participate in the care of these sea turtles almost every winter since 2016," said Dr. Shelly Marquardt, vice president of animal and environmental health and veterinarian for CMA. "We know that their time in rehabilitation here makes a difference for the future of this endangered species, and we are proud to be able to contribute to their conservation efforts," she said.

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Rehabilitation facilities in the northeast often work with other facilities to transfer stable turtles because of the large number that become cold-stunned during the winter, allowing facilities like New England Aquarium to continue to treat cold-stunned turtles during their most critical period.