CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Marine life experts are trying to find the cause of loggerhead sea turtle strandings on Coastal Bend beaches.
More than 170 turtles have washed up since the stranding event began in April and experts have new ideas about why it's happening.
Alicia Walker, Program coordinator for the Amos Rehabilitation Keep, said that one-to-two loggerhead sea turtles are continuing to strand every couple of days. The Texas State Aquarium was able to get five of those turtles from ARK to help them with capacity concerns, along with three more on Thursday.
"We've definitely seen lots of turtles come in for cold stunning, but never quite to this level for loggerhead sea turtles," Walker said.
TSA President Jesse Gilbert said they're happy to provide some relief for their area partners.
"They're recovering well, if we can just, you know, get a little bit of weight on them. You know, it really kind of speaks to what is happening in the wild and is it a prey issue," Gilbert said.
The exact cause of the turtle stranding's is still unknown, but Gilbert and Walker say it appears the diet of the turtles is a factor. Without enough food, the weak turtles are easily pushed around, many drowning before they even wash up on shore.
"The elevated winds, so if we take an animal that's already kind of emaciated, it's weak, it's not getting the nutrition it needs," Gilbert said. "You've got this strong winds that we've had with this high pressure system that's been over us for a while now, it's probably not helping the cause."
According to Walker, natural forces play a strong role in how sea turtles can end up stranded on our coastal shores.
"Those turtles are weak and they're out there in the gulf and then that wind is blowing them in," Walker said. "So, yah, they might strand when you see those winds, but they've really been sick for a while. Just further out at sea."
Walker said over 170 turtles have been affected by the stranding event, most do not survive. Around 60 were found alive so far, but sometimes die soon after they're found. With only room for about four more turtles, Gilbert said the extra space they'll have soon will help during times like this.
"It really speaks to the new Port of Corpus Christi Wildlife Rescue Center. That center's going to add significant capacity locally for turtle rehabilitation programs like this," Gilbert said.
Walker and Gilbert said that their teams are working hard to give the turtles the care they need to make a full recovery despite capacity concerns.
The TSA hopes to have the eight turtles they recently received to be fully rehabilitated in six-to-eight weeks after regaining proper weight and a good diet.
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