The Great Texas Turtle Rescue

Posted: 28-Jun-2002; Updated: 09-Jan-2003

In 1947 nearly 40,000 Kemp's ridley sea turtles laid eggs on the beaches of the Gulf of Mexico; this year the nests discovered along the Texas shore number just 32. The endangered Kemp's ridleys face grim threats: loss of their nesting beach, and death in shrimp trawls used by fishermen. But a program run by the National Park Service and Padre Island's official turtle patrol hopes to protect this year's first clutch of eggs.

The star of the turtle patrol is Dr. Donna Shaver, a biologist at the U.S. Geological Service, who this year has recovered about 2,400 eggs to an outdoor, predator-free hatchery, part of a long-term program to hatch and then release the baby turtles at Padre Island. Under the care of Shaver and her staff at the island's field research station, more than 85% of the eggs are expected to hatch baby turtles. As our video report shows (Real Player required), the program is having great success, as evidenced by the release of 679 baby turtles so far this year.

"We are making a difference," said Shaver. "We are having an impact. And today we have a clutch of hatchlings that we're releasing to prove it."

Environmental Defense has been aiding this restoration of the turtle population by working with shrimp fisherman to alter their harvesting methods and territories, such as moving boats out to deeper waters during nesting season.

"We urged the shrimp industry to use turtle extruder devices in their nets, to expel turtles that they accidentally catch, and they're using them," said Environmental Defense fisheries biologist Pam Baker. "We encouraged the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to plan the shrimping season around the peak of the mating and nesting season, and they made it happen. That's the kind of cooperation we need to help save this species."

Turtle releases are scheduled sporadically during the summer; if you'd like to watch one of the releases of baby sea turtles, call the station's Hatchling Hotline at (361) 949-7163. For directions check the Padre Island National Seashore's Web site.

Links

• Facts about the Kemp's ridley sea turtle
• Good News from Gulf Waters, including Environmental Defense's work with promoting fishing rules that protect turtles from shrimp trawler's nets (November 2001 newsletter article).