Sea Turtle Hospital News
Caroling, Caroling
Sea turtles are just full of surprises, and since they live solitary lives and never return to shore (except as a mama with eggs) their many talents remain largely undiscovered and unappreciated. But once our patients recover from their illness or injury and get bored swimming in circles they start thinking of ways to amuse themselves, and us.
Over the years we’ve had artists (Wendy, Lennie, Nubbin, Brownie); poets (Nubbin, Lennie) and composers (again, Lennie; are you seeing why he’s our hospital Ambassador?) Most turtle performances happen in the privacy of the hospital for the entertainment of the troops, our volunteers. But one tech-savvy Kemp’s Ridley chose to reach out via social media to everyone who supports us with a special Christmas greeting. After rehearsing for hours “Bishop” enlisted the help of the Sunday crew to put together the final production. He would like to thank Olivia Gaitros (cinematography) and Beth Howard (director/vocals) for making his dream come true.
You can view Bishop’s debut music video on YouTube. The easiest way to access it is via our hospital Facebook page. Go to our website: www.seaturtlehospital.org. Click on the Facebook link, and then click on “Sea Turtle Sings Holiday Greeting.” Sit back and enjoy the performance, or sing along!
It’s beginning to look a lot like…
…a new hospital. All of the necessary infrastructure inspections have been completed, and now drywall is going up over the “guts.” Pretty soon the inside will look, well, pretty. But there’s still a lot to do, especially regarding the plumbing for sea turtle bay. We’ve had years of experience “going with the flow” of water that keeps our turtles toasty and floating happily in their tanks, but it’s tough to explain to someone not familiar with the intricacies of our particular system and needs just how it works, and how to put it together. Sometimes it’s just easier and quicker to turn it into a do-it-yourself project. We’re still a few months away from calling the place “home” but at least we can see the light at the end of the very long hallway that runs the length of our building.
Thank you all for believing in our work and our turtles as we’ve struggled to raise both the funding and the building itself over the past few years. Christmas blessings, flipper hugs and turtle kisses for a happy and healthy 2012.
Gift Shop remains open
We will continue to open our gift shop every Tuesday until further notice. To shop on Tuesday just knock on our hospital door between 9 AM and 11 AM and our gift shop guru will personally escort you to our annex where she’ll assist you. Check out some of our merchandise on line before you come, and remember we can only accept cash and checks at this time. You can also shop for our logo T’s year-round at QuarterMoon Bookstore in Topsail Beach. Lori has been carrying our shirts for years; flipper hugs, lady. But if you can’t make it to our annex or Lori’s shop please use the online ordering service.
Our website: www.seaturtlehospital.org is open year-round. Stay connected with our patients and the progress of the new hospital. We’re stocked with clothing and other gifts and goodies perfect for turtle lovers. Follow the links to “Adopt-A-Sea-Turtle,” we have some pretty high maintenance patients who need all the financial and moral support you can provide. There’s still time to add your family’s name to our wall of fame with the “Family Giving Challenge.”
Can this continue?
Although we’ve been lucky so far Old Man Winter has a nasty habit of sneaking up on you overnight, so it’s especially important that our residents and visitors be on the lookout for turtles you see stranded on the beach, in the grasses along the shore and in the water. If it’s not moving please don’t assume it is dead. It might be cold stunned, and when rescued in time the prognosis for these critters is excellent.
If you come across a stunned turtle carefully pick it up and place it in a protected but not overly warm area (a garage, car or laundry room would work well.) DO NOT place the turtle in warm water; a sudden change in temperature will send it into shock and possibly kill it. Immediately call the Wildlife Resources Commission’s sea turtle emergency hotline number at: 252-241-7367. Someone is available 24/7 to pick up calls. Locally you can call Terry (see number below) or Jean at: 910-470-2800.
Please report any and all local sea turtle activity (hatchings, strandings, injured or sick turtles) immediately to our Director of Beach Operations, Terry Meyer at 910-470-2880. Terry can be reached at: topsailseaturtle@aol.com for non-emergencies. All sea turtles are federally protected and harassing or harming them in any way will result in hefty fines and/or imprisonment.
Questions, comments, suggestions??
Please direct any questions, comments or suggestions re: this column to me at: flippers@att.net. To be added to the newsletter list e-mail me at the same address: flippers@att.net. The Winter newsletter has been sent out, but I’ve had a few non-deliverables. If your e-mail address has recently changed please send me your new one so I can update my master list. You can also access the newsletter from our website.
