Marine Sciences & One Health

Gulf Center For Sea Turtle Research Rescues Cold-Stunned Turtles

Each turtle goes through an intake process and is assessed to determine their condition

While many Texans bundled up and turned on the heat for the cold weather, volunteers with the Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research (GCSTR) and staff from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department monitored the bays and shorelines, wading through cold water in search of cold-stunned sea turtles. With several turtles already receiving care, the center anticipates more will need assistance and veterinary treatment in the coming days. GCSTR will continue its response until the Gulf water warms and the danger of cold-stunning passes. 

As ectothermic (or cold-blooded) reptiles, sea turtles depend on their environment to regulate their body temperature. When water temperatures fall below 50 F for 24 hours or more, they can become cold-stunned, a vulnerable, coma-like state, with extended exposure to the cold potentially fatal.

Cold stunning also increases the likelihood that sea turtles will fall victim to injury, illness, predation or human activity, said GCSTR.

When a sea turtle in distress is spotted, the GCSTR team will rescue and transport it to Texas A&M University at Galveston. The center processes each sea turtle as it arrives, working with Houston Zoo veterinarians to assess each patient. The turtles then begin warming up in the center’s seawater tanks as the rehabilitation team works to develop a treatment plan for each individual turtle with the goal of returning it to the wild.

How can I help? 

If you are at the beach or out on the water, especially during winter weather events, and see a sea turtle in distress, call the Texas Sea Turtle Hotline at 1-866-TURTLE-5 (or 1-866-887-8535). Please keep in mind that the federal government gives all sea turtles legal protection in the United States and its waters under the Endangered Species Act and you should not handle sea turtles without express permission. The Texas Sea Turtle Hotline, in addition to monitoring done by volunteers and students, gives injured or sick turtles a chance to be rehabilitated, protects nests and allows for the collection of critical biological data to help conservation efforts for this endangered species.

You can support sea turtles by donating directly to the Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research or the Upper Texas Coast Sea Turtle Hospital and Educational Outreach Center capital campaign fund.

You can also apply to join the Sea Turtle Rescue Team, which responds to sick, injured, entangled or deceased sea turtles stranded along the upper Texas coast. Due to federal protections, applicants will undergo training and permitting before handling any sea turtles.