Turtles Rehabilitated 2014

The NOAA Galveston Laboratory has been raising sea turtles continously in captivity since 1977. As the Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network [STSSN] local represenatative for the upper Texas Gulf coast [coast is divided into 4 areas - upper, middle, Padre Island National Seashore and lower], we respond to sea turtle strandings, dead or alive. We document dead sea turtles, conduct a necropsy in an attempt to determine cause of death, collect biological samples if required, and dispose of the carcass. Live turtles are returned to the NOAA Galveston Laboratory where they are cared for in the sea turtle hospital. The NOAA Galveston Laboratory is not mandated to run a sea turtle hospital, but we do, because we have the capability to do so and there are no other local resources with the expertise to treat and house sick and injured sea turtles. Sea turtles receive medical attention from our attending veterinarians and The Houston Zoo, Inc., provides the bulk of those medical services free of charge. Once sea turtles are treated, recovered/rehabilitated and medically cleared, they are released either offshore or into Galveston Bay depending on the species, size and age of the turtle. We try to release sea turtles back into the wild where they would be normally found at that size and maturity. The Gulf of Mexico in Galveston seasonally supports healthy sea turtles from April to October. By November of each year, the coastal waters become too cold to support healthy sea turtles. Sea turtles that strand after October or that are still receiving treatment in October, are usually held over the winter and released the following spring. Occassionally, turtles that require holding over the winter are sent to The Houston Zoo, Inc., Moody Gardens, or Texas A&M University at Galveston for over-wintering.

To track the annual number of sea turtles that are rehabilitated by the NOAA Sea Turtle Facility hospital in 2014

Please note that there are changes between the 2013 and 2014 tables.

The database contains a summary of the number of sea turtles that have been rehabilitated by the NOAA Galveston Laboratory. Data includes the number of each species rehabilitated and the year in which each sea turtle was rehabilitated.

Things Added

There are additional columns added to indicate the year the turtle was taken for rehabilitation when counted it counting turtles released from rehabilitation. New columns are shown below

Rehabilitated 2011 turtles released in 2014 [12/31/2014]

Rehabilitated 2012 turtles released in 2014 [12/31/ 2014]

Rehabilitated 2013 turtles released in 2014 [12/31/2014]

Rehabilitated 2014 Turtles Released [12/31/2014]

Total Number Rehabiltated and Released [12/31/2014]

Also changed columns involving running totals to present and Numbers undergoing rehabilitation at a facility other than the NMFS Galveston Facility

Running total 2001-Present [12/31/2014]

Number Currently on Medication [12/31/2014]

Number Currently at Offsite Holding Facility [01/20/2015]