Rare young kemp's ridley marine turtle found on donegal bay beach

On Christmas Day 2014 Aoife Flynn found a dead turtle swept up on the rocks of Rossnowlagh beach. The Donegal Coastwatcher photographed the reptile carefully from all sides. ‘The one foot long marine turtle with an unusual beak and some damage to the top of its shell ridges, appeared to have died shortly before being found’, said Aoife, who then called Coastwatch HQ and put the animal into her deep freeze. Karin Dubsky Coastwatch coordinator noted: There is no state guidance or protocol in these situations. All offices were closed. Aoife’s photographs and body preservation was the best thing to do.

Coastwatch then searched for someone to do a necropsy (that is animal autopsy) to establish possible cause of death and examine stomach content. There was no doubt that this was an unusual find and so the first task was to accurately identify the specimen.

The necropsy was arranged through the Coastwatch network and Noirin Burke in Galway Aquarium who found a vet, Shirley Ann Alcorn at Donegal Animal Hospital in Letterkenny to host it. Dr Trish Murphy, herpetologist and Coastwatch regional coordinator, performed the necropsy with colleague Mark Daly.

Trish summarized results: the animal had an almost empty stomach, with only a bit of gelatinous matter – possibly jellyfish remains – and one fine plastic fiber as you would get from rope. Tissue samples and the shell have been saved for further analysis. There was no obvious cause of death by obstruction, desease, or injury. The top of ridges of the shell were damaged but could have happened as the turtle was swept up on rocks at the Rossnowlagh beach end.

Trish explained, as ectotherms the turtles body temperature is strongly linked to sea temperatures. If water temperatures drop suddenly the turtle will become lethargic and will float on ocean currents, unable to use their muscles effectively. Animals will stop feeding. It is likely that this juvenile starved on its journey across the Atlantic.

Ashley Shak, Boston University intern with Coastwatch who had worked in a turtle reserve in the Caribbean, noted that all sea turtles are endangered, but the Kemp's Ridley which is the smallest sea turtle was at the brink of extinction until a few years ago. Adults are thought to nest exclusively in the Gulf of Mexico and their range is generally limited to the Eastern US seaboard. Normally this turtle likes eating crabs and other inshore macro invertebrates as well as jellyfish but would be unable to do so in its lethargic state and Aoife Flynn has donated the shell to the Zoology Department, Trinity College Dublin who offered to put it on display in their registered zoology museum.

The Donegal Bay surf beach where this serving plate sized young turtle was found is not far from Murvagh where amazing quantities of jellyfish were recorded by Joe Gatins last summer and autumn, said Karin, whose team is just putting final touches to the 2014 Coastwatch Survey results. ‘Some areas have both onshore current and wind funneling making them hot spots for beached material and stranded wildlife. She added: Those are the beaches which I would prioritize to check for further turtles or other species which might be stranded.

International context

While this marine turtle is among the rarest sightings, unusually three Kemp's Ridley turtles have been reported from the UK in the same period. Another one was found in the Netherlands, while in France eight Kemp's have washed ashore including a live specimen.

Meanwhile Trish found reports in the US, where an unprecedented number of Kemp's Ridley strandings were reported this winter around Cape Cod. The US report states that cold-stunned turtles often seem lifeless but can recover. So the US advice is: every turtle gets 24 hours during which it is presumed to be alive, even if does not look it.

If volunteers in Ireland find a turtle or remains, or please contact Coastwatch and the National Parks and Wildlife Service. Coastwatch is now planning a strandings workshop as part of ‘Blue Info Days’ in late April.

Find and Photos are by Aoife Flynn who has more high quality ones which she is happy to share. Aoife Flynn [mailto:aoifeflynn@icloud.com] 086 8339183

Necropsy and more photos by Dr Trish Murphy 087 647 8183 and Mark Daly 087 9153437

Ashley Shak Coastwatch intern who has worked in a turtle nesting and nursery reserve 408.858.1218 shak.a@husky.neu.edu

Noirin Burke noirin@nationalaquarium.ie Galway Aquarium have recovery turtle expertise

US stranding report: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/13/science/a-cape-cod-mystery-hundreds-of-sea-turtles-stranded-on-beaches.html?_r=0