Increased sea turtle strandings a "cause for concern"

There has been a sharp increase in the number of turtle strandings on the Gulf Coast this year.
NOAA fisheries said it has seen a notable increase in sea turtle strandings since March 15^th, primarily in Mississippi.
They do acknowledge that there are generally more strandings in the spring, but add the recent increase in strandings is cause for concern.
So far this year 24 sea turtles have been stranded on Alabama shores, 33 along Louisiana, and 84 along Mississippi’s beaches.
More disturbing is that the vast majority of the strandings have been of Kemp’s Ridley turtles which are already endangered.

The cause of the strandings is not yet known, but researchers are looking at three possibilities that include fishing activities, algal blooms and impacts from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill.

The biggest problem researchers are having is finding turtle carcasses that are not too decomposed to provide meaningful information.


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