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June 26, 2009
Name
a Kemp's ridley hatchling contest
A
washed back Kemp's ridley hatchling needs a name. A visitor found
this little guy on the beach after it had been attacked by a small
predator on 3 of it's flippers. To participate in the contest please
go to the "Current Residents" section of the photopage.
A photo of the hatchling will be posted on there tonight (Friday,
June 26th). Name ideas should be posted as a a comment underneath
the photo. The contest will end on Monday, July 6th. Staff members
and interns will choose their favorite name as the winner. Good
luck!
Click
here to go to the "Naming Contest" contestant page
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June
24, 2009
Come
to a Sea Turtle Release!
JC
the Atlantic green is ready to be released from the care of Sea
Turtle, Inc. This release will be open to the public through American
Diving.
Reservations should be made through American Diving by
calling (956)761-4243.
The
release will be on Wednesday, July 1st.
The
boat will leave the dock at 7:00 pm sharp, so you should arrive
early. The cost to go on this sunset dolphin cruise/turtle release
is $16.00 for adults and $13.00 for children.
American
Diving docks is located at the southern end of South Padre Island
in the Sea Ranch Marina across from Schlitterbahn Water Park. Click
below for a map to American Diving.
Click
here for directions to American Diving.
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June
16, 2009 Update
The
First Babies Have Hatched!
The
first 5 nests have emerged and released out to the wild. The very
first public hatchling release was on June 13 at 7:00 am. There
were at least 400 people attending the event. A total of 297 hatchlings
were released on that saturday morning. We are anticipating more
nests to hatch within the next week. For the most up to date information
on the status of the nests please call Sea Turtle, Inc. at 9:00
pm. We will update the voicemail each night with the probability
of a public hatchling release.
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June
4, 2009 Update
Maggie's
Intern Blog
One of our summer
interns, Maggie now has a blog dedicated to her experiences here
as a Sea Turtle, Inc. intern. Some of you may remember Anna's blog
from a couple years ago. We are very happy to have another intern
doing a blog about her summer! If you would like to read the blog
click on the link below.
Click
here for Maggie's blog!
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May
5, 2009 Update
Come
to a Sea Turtle Release!
We
have a bunch of Atlantic greens that are ready to be released from
the care of Sea Turtle, Inc. These releases are open to the public
through American Diving. Reservations should be made through American
Diving by calling (956)761-4243.
The
releases will be on May 13th & May 20th at 6:00 pm.
The
boat will leave the dock at 6:00 pm sharp, so you should arrive
early. The cost to go on this sunset dolphin cruise/turtle release
is $13.00 for adults and children.
American
Diving docks is located at the southern end of South Padre Island
in the Sea Ranch Marina across from Schlitterbahn Water Park. Click
below for a map to American Diving.
Click
here for directions to American Diving.
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May
2 , 2009 Update
Check
Out A New Section On the Webpage
There
is now a "2009 Nesting Season & Hatchling Update"
Webpage on Seaturtleinc.org. On this page we will have the most
updated information regarding how many nests have been found, when
they are estimated to hatch out and information on attending a public
hatchling release.
Click
on the hatchling below to check this new section out for yourself!
or
Click here to see the Nesting Season Page
(A
new button is also located at the menu on the top of the website
as well)
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April
14, 2009 News
Website
Was Down But Not Out!
A
Media Star is Born & Two New Turtles at The Hospital.
Our
website has been down for almost an entire week due to a server
problem. Thankfully the issue has been resolved. During this down
time a lot has been happening at Sea Turtle, Inc.
Below
is the story regarding Allison the Atlantic green sea turtle's media
release story. There has been a ton of interest from the media regarding
Allison's jacket and Tom Wilson, our intern that developed the suit.
A new page will be created soon that will cover this media coverage.
The beginning of this list includes, The Today Show, The Associated
Press, Houston Chronicle, The Brownsville Herald, The Island Breeze,
MSNBC affliates, AOL, YaHoo (just to name of few).
We
also have 2 new sea turtles in the hospital. They are a transfer
and a new stranding. The transferred turtle is a 147 lb loggerhead
named "Jenny" from The Ark in Port Aransas, Texas. She
has shell damage possibly due to a boat injury. The back flippers
of this loggerhead are not fully functional and we were pleased
to take in the care of Jenny from The Ark. The other new arrival
is a juvenile Atlantic green that stranded near the south jetties
on the Island. The folks that found this little guy have yet to
pick a name. We will be posting photos of these two newbies very
soon under the "Current Residents" section of the photopage.
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April
8, 2009 News
Media
Release Day for Allison the Atlantic Green Sea Turtle
Sea
Turtle with only one flipper able to swim again aided by a stabilizing
fin and scuba jacket
Video
of Allison swimming now available!
Click
to view a video of Allison swimming in her stabilizing jacket.
For
photos of the Allison & her jacket, please check the photopage.
Contact:
Jeff George, Curator, Sea Turtle Inc. 956.761.4511
South
Padre Island, TX - Today, “Allison”, a five year old
Green sea turtle missing three flippers will be enclosed in a snug
black neoprene “ninja” jacket with a long Velcro enclosure.
(photo). A Sea Turtle, Inc. (STI) staff person wearing scrubs with
“Sea Turtle Hospital” emblazoned across the back will
adjust a carbon fiber “fin” that runs along the turtles
back extending well beyond the shell. A second staffer will then
carefully lift the 27 pound turtle and slip it into a 4 foot deep
tank. Today’s public demonstration will document a major quality
of life change for the turtle. Stress free, Allison now swims and
dives with ease.
“Allison”
stranded in June 2005 about 12 miles north of Sea Turtle Inc. on
South Padre Island a victim of a shark attack that took 3 flippers.
She escaped euthanasia only by pleas from staff and interns. The
turtle has only the right front flipper and until now has been limited
to moving in tight 360 degree circles in a tank with no more than
10” of water.
There has been
a lot of effort over the last couple of years to develop a prosthesis
for the turtle with one attempt at a fake rear flipper that was
unsuccessful. Thinking outside the box, Tom Wilson, a 2008 summer
intern at STI began observing “Allison” in her tank
sketching her movements. He noted that if the force of the thrust
of her only remaining flipper could be controlled, maybe it could
be channeled into moving her forward.
Discussions
with STI Curator Jeff George and Gladys Porter Zoo (Brownsville,
TX) veterinarian Dr. Tom DeMaar produced the go ahead for the attempt.
Permission was granted mainly because the effort would be totally
non-invasive or harassing to the turtle.
Wilson laid
his own scuba jacket over a drawing of “Allison’s”
measurements. A pattern was cut and sewn by a Sea Turtle Inc. volunteer.
A wooden rudder was attached and weighted, and the prototype was
successfully tested. Work immediately began on a more streamline
version of the jacket for today’s demonstration.
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| February
17, 2009 News |
| Hawksbill
Sea Turtles Go To Dallas World Aquarium
Two
of Sea Turtle, Inc.'s non-releasable hawksbill sea turtles have
been adopted by the Dallas World Aquarium. Isla & PattiCake
had been patients in the hospital for a number of years.
"Isla"
was missing parts of 3 flippers from a predator attack and used
to have a severe bouyancy problem due to a blunt strike to the shell.
The bouyancy problem fixed itself over the years, which made Isla
a likely candidate for placement in an aquarium.
"PattiCake"
was also attacked by a predator in the wild and was missing parts
of all 4 flippers.
The
enclosure for the hawksbills at the Dallas World Aquarium is a 9,000
gallon reef tank with many new and exciting places to explore, wedge
into and hide. Photos of Patti & Isla being taken out the transport
vehicle are on the photo page.
Click
here to see pictures of Isla & PattiCake leaving Sea Turtle,
Inc.
Dallas
World Aquarium will be posting more information on the new turtles
under their care on their website in the future. For more on the
Dallas World Aquarium: http://www.dwazoo.com/d/
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| Unique
Sea Turtle Research Project Needs Funding |
Injured
Sea Turtle "Allison" to get Prosthesis. |
Sea
Turtle, Inc., The Gladys Porter Zoo, and the University of Texas
Dental Branch at Houston have formed a partnership to create a workable
prosthesis for a one flippered green sea turtle. A sea turtle prosthesis
has never been done. To contribute toward the medical expenses for
“Allison” a three year old green sea turtle, click on
the icon below.
 *
ADOPT ALLISON THE GREEN SEA TURTLE *
Adoptions
are a donation made to care for and feed a turtle for one month.
Sea Turtle, Inc. spends approximately $1 per day per turtle for
human quality seafood and romaine lettuce. You will receive a photo
of Allison, a short biography of her, general information about
green sea turtles and Sea Turtle, Inc. and a small gift. For the
most recent photographs or news on Allison, please check the photo
section within the "Current Residents" section. Click
here for photos of Allison!
Adopt A Turtle online via Credit
Card
using the secure PayPal service
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