We came to Isla Blanca RV Park on South Padre Island from Donna, Texas where we were supposed to spend two weeks at Victoria Palms Encore RV. We left early due to the horrid humidity of 94% combined with temperatures in the mid to upper 90’s. We hoped getting to the beach would make the heat and humidity more tolerable. It really wasn’t, but it’s always nice to be at a beach.
Not sure if they really didn’t see the sign or couldn’t read the English.
Changing our reservation, we couldn’t get the same site. Our view to the water wasn’t what we hoped it would be, so we simply drove Sadie to the beach parking lot where we escaped the heat of the day with AC and beautiful views of the water. We love the flexibility Sadie provides us!
About 4 PM we went out onto the beach with our Kilos Gear chairs. These chairs are awesome…they are so light, pack up so small, yet are extremely comfortable!! We took advantage of shade provided by the boardwalk shade-brellas as long as possible before moving out in full but less intense sun till dusk/sunset.
The wind drifts were pretty impressive.
A huge group of seagulls took off and as they turned, they were right in front of us. I screamed as they went up higher! Provoked a momentary flashback to “The Birds” by Alfred Hitchcock! Thought of you, Abby! The picture below doesn’t compare because more than half are still on the ground.
Checking out a seawall.
A look back toward the beach from the seawall.
SEA TURTLE INC
OMG. This place was so cool. Sea Turtle Inc takes in injured and cold-stressed sea turtles as needed. When they rescue a turtle, the turtle gets a full medical check-up and usually remains in their care for about two weeks. If health is compromised or the turtle is injured and needs more time and in-depth help, it will receive it. Sea Turtle Inc rehabilitates 40-100+ sea turtles for successful release back into the ocean each year! (Special BONUS at the END of today’s blog!)
There are two separate buildings to the Sea Turtle Inc complex. The first building houses rescued turtles during their assessment, along with any medical treatment and rehabilitation that may be needed. The goal is always to get every rescued turtle healthy enough to be successfully returned to their natural environment.
This building has medical equipment to assist with diagnosis and any needed surgical procedures. The turtles receive amazing care.
Sea turtle PREDATORS – I never thought of a coyote or raccoon as being a predator of a sea turtle, but it makes sense for nesting turtles, and especially the eggs since they are unattended. They dig them up and eat them or grab the hatchlings as they start to emerge.
Cowgirl is currently featured in the first tank inside the entrance. She is a great ambassador resident turtle as she “greets” everyone as they enter Sea Turtle Inc. She is an Atlantic Green sea turtle who first came to Sea Turtle Inc on June 16, 2021. Cowgirl weighed only 2.9 pounds!! She was missing her front right flipper from a predator attack. All bloodwork and x-ray results came back as normal. She was released in September but got stranded a second time. After her fourth stranding, Sea Turtle Inc became Cowgirl’s forever home. She now weighs 21.1 pounds – four years after her first stranding. 🙂 If a rescued turtle has lost a flipper, they are no longer released back into the wild.
Is there really a need for Sea Turtle Inc?
Many local turtles get washed up into the rocks of the jetties by rough seas, and then get stuck. They inspect the jetties regularly and have a 24-hour hotline for people to call if they spot a stranded or injured sea turtle, or spot one during nesting season coming up from the water or heading back to it.
Background is given for each hospital patient by their tank.
I believe Camo was released shortly after our visit.
BANANA (released shortly after our visit) & CARAMEL (minor and moderate abrasions + tar on neck, rear flippers and. plastron)
More, pictures that I liked, but I can’t remember which patient it is since I can’t see the name on the shell. 🙂
COLD STUN EVENT – This can affect hundreds even thousands of sea turtles all at the same time! Sea turtles are cold-blooded animals. If and when the water temperature becomes too cold for a period of time, and the turtles are unable to maintain their body temperature, the turtle is awake, but unable to move. If they are not rescued right away, they are likely to drown even though floating because they can’t lift their head to breathe! They are also vulnerable for boat strikes and birds.
COLD STUN – Feb 20, 2021. Water temperatures were too low for the turtles for 7 consecutive days! The picture that was used for the wall information below is not of rocks. Those are ALL turtles!! Over 5500 turtles!!
Community volunteers are critical during a cold stun rescue, and then again once the water temperatures have stabilized, and all healthy turtles need to be transported to the local SPI beach for release back into the Gulf of Mexico! Our friends, Brian and Michelle were fortunate to witness a release of about 150 turtles a couple of months ago. It’s something to watch!!
If we lived here, I would totally be an active volunteer here!!
To keep up on currently rescued sea turtles and their progress, click HOSPITAL PATIENTS
“Residents” are housed in the building at the end of the boardwalk.
RESIDENTS:
Hang Ten – A Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle
Hang Ten hatched right here on South Padre Island on July 11, 2009! Unfortunately, he had a unique birth defect. His right front flipper was forked and curled under his body.
Hang Ten washed up on the beach the day after his hatchling release. After years of development and getting bigger, evidence emerged showing difficulty in diving and hunting. This would not allow him to survive in the wild. Hang Ten is the only turtle in the facility that the exact age is known!
Hang Ten now weighs 66 lbs. His favorite food is crab.
Merry Christmas – an Atlantic Green sea turtle.
Merry Christmas washed up on a beach Christmas Eve in the early 80’s. She now weighs 168 pounds and loves lettuce. That’s a lot of lettuce!
Poppy – a Loggerhead sea turtle
Poppy currently weighs 225 pounds!! Her favorite food is mackerel. I believe she is the largest turtle here.
Poppy is missing her right rear flipper and had shell damage from a boat strike. The damage to the shell gave Poppy “bubble butt” which causes a turtle to float with their backend UP. Bubble butt turtles are non-releasable since they cannot dive for food or protection. Floating makes them extremely vulnerable to predators and boat strikes.
GERALDINE –oops –NOW GERRY! – an Atlantic Green sea turtle
Geraldine washed ashore due to the turbulent seas and high winds of Hurricane Allen in August, 1980
Each turtle is named as they are rescued from their stranding. It is a name to help identify them. Geraldine drew up in a tank with Merry Christmas. Green sea turtles mature in their mid-20’s. At that time her tail grew quite long. That meant Geraldine was not a she, but a he!!
Name was revised to Gerry. 🙂
Gerry now weighs 156 lbs, and his favorite food is bell pepper!
To meet additional residents, learn more about each one, and see a better picture than the ones we got- click: RESIDENTS!
Sea Turtle’s Inc secondary mission is to educate the public. They provide great information in both buildings.
It was cool to see this size comparison of the various sea turtles. From left to right (smallest to largest): Kemp’s Ridley, Hawksbill, Loggerhead, Atlantic Green, and Leatherback
Some interesting differences among them.
Kemp’s Ridley – This is the smallest and MOST endangered of all the sea turtles. They tend to weigh 75-100 pounds with a shell that gets up to 2 feet in length. Their parrot-like beak helps them crush and grind blue crabs, shrimp, and other invertebrates for their carnivorous diet.
The Kemp’s Ridley is the only daytime nester of the sea turtles. It has a small nesting range that extends from the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas into south Texas, including South Padre Island.
Hawksbill – These are also a smaller sea turtle, but considered by many to be the most beautiful one due to their brightly contrasting colors on their shell. The colors act as a camouflage in and around their coral reef habitat. They can weigh up to 200 pounds, but typically don’t reach more than 3 feet in length. The Yucatan Peninsula coast along the Gulf of Mexico from the state of Campeche north along the state of Yucatan is the main nesting area for Hawksbill turtles.
Loggerhead – Loggerheads are a generalist species that can be found in almost all tropical oceans and seas. They can reach 4 feet in length and weigh up to 350 pounds! The scales on their flippers and face are reddish brown in color and often have a heart-shaped shell. Loggerheads are named aptly for their exceptionally large heads. Their strong jaws are perfect for feeding on shellfish like clams, oysters and crabs. A bite force of 500+ pounds is incredible! Watch all your appendages if around one!
Atlantic Green – Green sea turtles can reach 4 feet in length and weight up to 500 pounds!! The sunburst patter on their shells can vary from different shades of BROWN and tan to dark green and brilliant yellow. Green sea turtles are primarily herbivores. They have a sharp, serrated beak adapted to grazing on sea grass beds. Green turtle nesting is on the northern coast of Mexico’s state of Yucatan.
Leatherbacks – Leatherbacks are the largest of the sea turtles. They weigh in between 500 and 2000 pounds with a shell length of 4-8 feet! UNLIKE, most sea turtles, the leatherbacks have a shell made of cartilage that is soft and leathery. Thus the name, leatherbacks. This adaptation allows them to dive into the deep waters of the ocean to feed primarily on soft-bodied invertebrates such as jellyfish.
By eating 70% of their body weight in jellyfish every day, the leatherback turtles keep the oceans from being overwhelmed with jellyfish. The leatherbacks stay in deeper waters till they come ashore at night for nesting. Their main nesting area – the coast in the northeast corner of Mexico’s state of Yucatan on the Gulf of Mexico.
Staff keeps track of the nests occurring now, and how many eggs are in each nest. If the nest is not in the best location for survival, they will carefully relocate it.
Their website seaturtleinc.org has a calendar that gets updated as nests are reported, # eggs, and then the dates of hatchlings. Generally, the hatchlings appear 45-55 days from the date laid in the nest. I would LOVE to witness a nest of hatchlings heading to the water!. They are so dang cute!
Educational displays on site:
This is model of a Kemp’s Ridley nesting…and a “cut-a-way” view of the eggs down in nest down in the ground.
It is amazing how female turtles return to nest in the same area where they were born, and they continue to return there every year they lay eggs. The sex of the sea turtle hatchling is determined by temperature of the sand! Warmer temperatures produce more females, and cooler temperatures produce more males.
A hatchling fits into the center of an adult’s palm of their hand. Hatchlings weigh about the same as 3 nickels!
ART from South Padre’s BEACH TRASH – The purpose was to heighten awareness of the danger of our carelessness to the sea turtles (and other sea life).
Mona’s favorite animal is the sea turtle, so which one do I buy in the gift shop??? As I was trying to decide I asked what the all grey one was. It’s a fledgling! THAT’s the one!!
BONUS!!!
When our friends, Brian and Michelle from LivingOurVision stopped here a couple of months prior to us. They were surprised to discover that the Sea Turtle Inc staff and volunteers were actively preparing to release around 150 turtles back into the Gulf of Mexico! These turtle were cold stun victims 2-3 weeks earlier when a serious cold front came to the area. Temperatures had warmed back up and appeared stable, so most of the turtles were ready for release. Brian and Michelle were able to go to the beach with many locals to witness the release. This was really cool!!!
Here is a link to their experience. “Heartwarming Release of Hundred of Rescued Sea Turtles”