Neither the threat of rain nor a tornado stopped people from coming out to witness the release of seven sea turtles at Inlet Beach in South Walton on May 7 by the Gulfarium C.A.R.E. Center of Okaloosa Island.
Before 9 a.m., more than 500 people lined the beach, leaving a pathway for the sea turtles to be released back into the Gulf.
“We’ve been here since 7:30 a.m.,” said Lindsey Lauters of Sandestin, noting they were some of the first to arrive.
“We got up at 5:30 a.m. to get here … so we could get up front … we’re excited and stoked,” said Sheri Taylor of Destin, noting they ignored the tornado warnings.
Before the C.A.R.E. Center people brought the turtles down to be released, people were already waiting with cameras and cell phones ready to take photos and video.
“I’ve seen them on TV, but never in person,” said Jill Marshall, who was visiting the area from Spokane, Washington.
Marshall, who loves turtles, said she heard about the event from family and decided to come down to the beach to see them up close.
“It’s pretty special … I couldn’t have timed it better,” Marshall said of her visit.
The seven turtles released by the Gulfarium on Thursday ranged in size from a 3.5-pound juvenile green sea turtle named Pipsqueak, to a 184-pound male loggerhead named Apricot.
“All the guys we have today have been hooked at one of the local fishing piers, but they are all going back,” said Sarah Kamen, stranding coordinator for the Gulfarium C.A.R.E. Center, noting the turnaround for some of the turtles was quick.
Sawyer and Gary, both loggerhead turtles, came in over the weekend and were already cleared to go back out on Thursday.
Kamen said about 85 percent of the turtles that wind up at the C.A.R.E. Center have been hooked at one of the local fishing piers. She said they get hooked in the mouth or flipper.
“The fishermen have their bait in the water, and the turtle tries to eat it … they get hooked by accident,” Kamen said.
She said they have had turtles hit by boats that have just washed ashore, and in the winter, they deal with some that are exhibiting hypothermia.
Although the stay for most of the turtle’s released Thursday has been short, Squidward, a 43-pound Kemp’s Ridley came in on April 28, and Ditto, a 133-pound loggerhead, a repeat patient, came in on April 26.
“We have had some over a year,” Kamen said.
And the folks at the Gulfarium do get attached to the turtles.
“Especially to the ones that come in extra sick and they make a full recovery,” Kamen said.
“You see them at their worst and then being there for recovery … it’s such a heartwarming feeling,” Kamen said.
The release on Thursday went off without a hitch. All of the turtles were carried down in large black tubs and placed near the water, except for Pipsqueak.
Cheering and clapping could be heard coming from the crowd as each turtle made their way into the Gulf.
“Yeah … freedom,” was heard time after time.
The Gulfarium C.A.R.E. Center turtle release on May 7 was sponsored by The St. Joe Community Foundation.
Seven turtles released
Ditto – 133-pound adult female loggerhead sea turtle.
Squidward – 43-pound, subadult Kemp’s Ridley.
Plankton – 68-pound subadult loggerhead.
Pipsqueak – 3.5-pound juvenile green sea turtle.
Sawyer – 88-pound subadult loggerhead.
Gary – 84-pound subadult loggerhead.
Apricot – 184-pound adult male loggerhead.
This article originally appeared on The Destin Log: Hundreds watch seven sea turtles return to the Gulf
Reporting by Tina Harbuck, The Destin Log / The Destin Log
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
