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'Cold-stunned' turtles warming up at Florida Keys Turtle Hospital
By Florida Keys News
December 10, 2025 at 11:49 AM EST
The Florida Keys welcomes a lot of visitors during the winter months, seeking warm weather and sunshine. Twenty-five visitors who arrived Tuesday were no exception – but they weren't tourists.
They're critically endangered sea turtles, and they're fighting for their lives.
"We get a lot of visitors to the Florida Keys during the winter months," said Turtle Hospital manager Bette Zirkelbach. "These are very special visitors that have come to the Turtle Hospital to be rehabilitated in the warm weather. Once they are back in good health, they will be returned to the warmer waters in Florida."
The “Kemp's ridley” juvenile sea turtles were rescued after a cold-stunning event in Cape Cod Bay left them stranded, hypothermic, and unable to swim. They were flown to Florida Keys Marathon International Airport by volunteer pilots with LightHawk, a conservation aviation organization, arriving from the New England Aquarium in banana boxes.
But there's so much more at stake than recovery. These 25 turtles represent hope for a species on the brink.
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"All sea turtles in and around the United States are on the endangered species list," Zirkelbach said. "The Kemp's ridley turtles are critically endangered, which means it's possible they could go extinct in our lifetime. It's very important to get these juvenile turtles back in good health and return to the wild so they can procreate."
Sea turtles follow the Gulf Stream north during summer months, attracted by abundant food in Cape Cod Bay. But when the cold weather moves in quickly and bay's shape traps them, the consequences can be deadly.
"Sea turtles are ectothermic," Zirkelbach explained. "They take on the temperature of the air and water surrounding them. They cannot regulate their body temperature, so they experience a cold stunning in temperatures below 55 degrees water temperature."
Cold stunning slows their metabolism to a crawl. They stop eating. They float helplessly or wash ashore.
"They get similar symptoms as a human would get with hypothermia," Zirkelbach said. "So, some of these animals are critical. They have pneumonia."
The 25 that arrived in Marathon were rescued by volunteers who comb Cape Cod beaches once water temperatures drop. After volunteers find the stranded turtles, the New England Aquarium stabilizes them. LightHawk then coordinates volunteer pilots who donate their aircraft, fuel, and time to fly the turtles south.
The 25 Kemp's ridleys were admitted to the Turtle Hospital Tuesday evening. Treatment started immediately. Some turtles may recover in a month. Others could require up to a year of care as they battle pneumonia and deep bone infections.
But every turtle that survives and returns to the wild matters. With Kemp's ridleys facing possible extinction within our lifetime, these 25 juveniles carry the future of their species.
"It's very important to get these 25 turtles back in good health, return them to the wild to help save the species," Zirkelbach said.
They're critically endangered sea turtles, and they're fighting for their lives.
"We get a lot of visitors to the Florida Keys during the winter months," said Turtle Hospital manager Bette Zirkelbach. "These are very special visitors that have come to the Turtle Hospital to be rehabilitated in the warm weather. Once they are back in good health, they will be returned to the warmer waters in Florida."
The “Kemp's ridley” juvenile sea turtles were rescued after a cold-stunning event in Cape Cod Bay left them stranded, hypothermic, and unable to swim. They were flown to Florida Keys Marathon International Airport by volunteer pilots with LightHawk, a conservation aviation organization, arriving from the New England Aquarium in banana boxes.
But there's so much more at stake than recovery. These 25 turtles represent hope for a species on the brink.
Untitled
"All sea turtles in and around the United States are on the endangered species list," Zirkelbach said. "The Kemp's ridley turtles are critically endangered, which means it's possible they could go extinct in our lifetime. It's very important to get these juvenile turtles back in good health and return to the wild so they can procreate."
Sea turtles follow the Gulf Stream north during summer months, attracted by abundant food in Cape Cod Bay. But when the cold weather moves in quickly and bay's shape traps them, the consequences can be deadly.
"Sea turtles are ectothermic," Zirkelbach explained. "They take on the temperature of the air and water surrounding them. They cannot regulate their body temperature, so they experience a cold stunning in temperatures below 55 degrees water temperature."
Cold stunning slows their metabolism to a crawl. They stop eating. They float helplessly or wash ashore.
"They get similar symptoms as a human would get with hypothermia," Zirkelbach said. "So, some of these animals are critical. They have pneumonia."
The 25 that arrived in Marathon were rescued by volunteers who comb Cape Cod beaches once water temperatures drop. After volunteers find the stranded turtles, the New England Aquarium stabilizes them. LightHawk then coordinates volunteer pilots who donate their aircraft, fuel, and time to fly the turtles south.
The 25 Kemp's ridleys were admitted to the Turtle Hospital Tuesday evening. Treatment started immediately. Some turtles may recover in a month. Others could require up to a year of care as they battle pneumonia and deep bone infections.
But every turtle that survives and returns to the wild matters. With Kemp's ridleys facing possible extinction within our lifetime, these 25 juveniles carry the future of their species.
"It's very important to get these 25 turtles back in good health, return them to the wild to help save the species," Zirkelbach said.