ENDANGERED SEA TURTLE RESCUED CLOSE TO OREGON COAST

The gentle giants of the ocean are green sea turtles. They are herbivores that roam the waters of Earth, getting their distinctive green colour from the plants they eat. Sadly, some green sea turtle populations are classified as endangered species. As adults, they can grow up to 4 feet long and weigh up to 350 pounds. However, when a single hypothermic member of the species washed up on a beach in Oregon, she turned out to be much smaller—almost tiny. After rescuing the 22-pound turtle, Seaside Aquarium personnel started Squirt, as she is now known, on the path to recovery right away. 

On Saturday, January 6, 2024, at Manzanita Beach, Squirt was discovered. It is unusual to find a sea turtle along such a northern coastline, and they are usually so cold that you can hardly feel their heart rate. Before they can go back to their flooded home, they need to be stabilized and rescued. Following the turtle's capture, the employees of Seaside Aquarium posted the following on Facebook: "We were taken aback by the turtle's diminutive size upon our arrival." At just 22 pounds, this little squirt was among the smallest turtles we have ever seen. She was very animated, kicking her head back and forth and kicking her flippers like she was swimming when she was picked up.

Squirt will receive rehabilitation at Oregon Coast Aquarium before being released, so they took her there. The turtle is seen in adorable photos that the rescue shared of her curled up under warm blankets to regain her body temperature. She also looks like a dog bed, with her flippers hanging over the edge. Squirt's fortunate turn of events is only a tiny portion of a bigger campaign to protect marine life.

This entails fighting the climate catastrophe while purifying our waters and preventing plastic debris from endangering wildlife. Furthermore, it means that, like Squirt's rescuers, many will be helping to rescue and warm chilly turtles that wash ashore—as many will do in Texas in 2021. Every small reptile that is saved is a triumph.