This baby loggerhead turtle, photo by Lewis Walter, washed up on Fish Hoek beach
on 16th June. It was about 8cm long and was on its way to the Two Oceans Aquarium within an hour of being brought in. In early winter baby turtles wash up on the beaches. The ones on our beaches have been swept down the coast from KZN by the warm Agulhas Current into our cold Cape waters. The little ones can suffer from hypothermia very quickly. It is very important that they are wrapped in a towel and kept as warm as possible. Don’t keep them wet or wrapped in wet newspaper etc, it can make them even colder and they could die.
I can be contacted on or the Two Oceans Aquarium can be contacted on . The Emergency Control Centre – -
can also be contacted. The Aquarium staff will keep the baby turtles in warm water and look after them until they are strong enough to be sent back to
KZN.
We were at the Aquarium in early July and saw that they now have 12 baby turtles to look after. The ones from Fish Hoek beach are doing well. They will be kept until year end and then flown back to U’shaka for re-release. They should have doubled their size by then. A really good news story. Evanne Rothwell.