Washed-up sea turtles

On the seashore you may see living turtles (for example small sea turtles like the Loggerhead sea turtle) or dead ones (for example the Leatherback turtle).

 

Living turtles on the seashore

Sea turtles are often washed up on the seashore in winter. Exhaustion due to the cold, injury and the presence of a channel of hot water in the Bay of Biscay (Duguy, 2001) are just some of the hypotheses explaining this phenomenon.
The living sea turtles found washed up are mainly young ones. In their first few years of life, turtles go through a pelagic stage also known as the “lost years”, due to a lack of knowledge and the few observations we have of turtles at this stage of life.
 

 

Advice from the C.E.S.T.M.
If I find a turtle washed up on the beach, what should I do?
“You must notify La Rochelle Aquarium immediately. Depending on where the turtle has washed up, we will either come and rescue it ourselves, or send the closest person qualified to transport sea turtles.”
 

 

Dead turtles on the seashore

These are mainly large Leatherback turtles, which are easily recognisable because they are the only turtles to have no scales on their shell (see identification of sea turtles).

 

Advice from the C.E.S.T.M.
If I find a dead turtle washed up on the beach, what should I do?
“You must also notify La Rochelle Aquarium. We will then come to take the necessary measures and samples for performing analyses, or send someone trained in washed up sea turtles.”
 

 

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