Two Oceans Aquarium rescues first five turtle hatchlings stranded on Cape Town beaches

Five little loggerhead turtle hatchlings have already been rescued by Two Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town, South Africa, this season. They were found on beaches in the Western Cape, far away from where they hatched in KZN!

Two Oceans said: “Hatchling season, or stranding season, is upon us. We have already received five loggerhead hatchlings so far. They were found in False Bay, Strandfontein, and Cape Point – quite a distance for 40-to-60-gram hatchlings to have travelled from the beaches where they hatched in KwaZulu Natal.”

The annual stranding season usually runs from March until July, but started slightly earlier this year.

The Turtle Conservation Centre at the world-famous aquarium is very busy at the moment – rescuing hatchlings and looking after two large loggerhead turtles, three green turtles, three hawksbill turtles and taking care of more hatchlings from last year!

“We also have seven loggerhead hatchlings that arrived in 2022 and needed extra care before their eventual release,” said Two Oceans.

They’ve also been following the wonderful adventures of Bob the Green Sea Turtle, who – after eight years receiving expert care from the dedicated team at the V&A Waterfront’s Two Oceans Aquarium – was released into the Indian Ocean off the KZN coast just over a month ago.

“Bob has been swimming along our coastline and making great progress,” the aquarium reports.

Why do turtle hatchlings strand?

Two Oceans says there are several reasons that cause a hatchling to strand… but that the main causes are injury, cold shock, dehydration, and plastic ingestion.

What is cold shock?

“Turtles are marine reptiles, which means they rely on the temperature of their environment to warm them up. When they are compromised and find themselves in our cold waters, their bodies go into “survival mode”. This means the hatchlings use all their energy to conserve their vital organs. So, instead of exerting energy to swim, the exhausted hatchlings simply float with the currents pushing them in all directions. This often leads to stranding on Western Cape beaches,” says Two Oceans.

Turtles tend to ingest plastic pollution

“Turtle hatchlings are opportunistic feeders, which means they will eat anything and everything for them to grow big and strong in the big blue ocean,” explains the aquarium. “Unfortunately, microplastics (tiny pieces of plastic smaller than 5mm) float on the surface, where hatchlings spend most of their time. Sadly, one of our recent arrivals passed away as it had ingested 47 pieces of plastic – it only weighed 44 grams. This is the sad reality which faces our marine life.”

What can you do to prevent turtles ingesting plastic?

Small actions can make all the difference. Two Oceans encourages beach goers to refuse single-use plastics; and to rather buy second-hand, participate in beach clean-ups, and raise awareness with friends and family. “It is so important to protect our oceans as the earth is an ocean planet: without a living ocean, there is no life at all.”

Thankfully, through rehabilitation, Two Oceans’ Turtle Conservation Centre is able to save many lives. Please support Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation so they can conitinue to support these little hatchlings: 
https://www.aquarium.co.za/foundation/support