When the early December winds of Massachusetts whip up and ocean temperatures drop, staff and volunteers of the Audubon Wellfleet Wildlife Sanctuary head to the local shorelines to play their vital role in what has become a routine annual phenomenon: the rescue attempt of the populations of sea turtles that arrive – cold-stunned and in critical condition – on the beaches along Cape Cod, in their hundreds.

This season, more than 200 cold-stunned sea turtles have washed ashore, the majority of which in a state of critical hypothermia. From here, and thanks to the efforts of volunteers and New England Aquarium staff, these sea turtles have been transported to the Aquarium’s Sea Turtle Hospital in Quincy to be treated for life-threatening medical conditions resulting from illness and their inability to feed.

It’s a sight the New England locals have grown only too accustomed to. The annual occurrence sees hundreds of cold-stunned sea turtles wash up on the beaches of Cape Cod each autumn and early winter. It’s down to the rapidly changing water temperatures and wind patterns across the Gulf of Maine, trapping sea turtles that would usually be heading for warmer waters behind the hook-like region of Cape Cod Bay. As those water temperatures plummet, so too does the turtles’ body temperature, until they become hypothermic.

So far this season, staff and volunteers from the New England Aquarium have treated 257 live sea turtles: 214 critically endangered Kemp’s ridley turtles, 39 green turtles, and four loggerheads. The majority of species found along the shore lines are now critically endangered and face increasing threats from fisheries, climate change, ocean pollution, and the degradation of their habitats.

Volunteers and staff have therefore taken it upon themselves to step in with a helping hand where nature’s has been forced by the growing impacts of human activity.

“With winds increasing and temperatures dropping, we have started to see more sea turtles enter the hospital in the last week,” said Adam Kennedy, the Aquarium’s director of rescue and rehabilitation. “The New England Aquarium has developed ways to streamline intakes of these large numbers of patients, allowing us to give the best possible care to all of the turtles that enter our hospital.”

It’s a level of care that is urgently required by many. The sea turtles are often critically ill and require a variety of medical treatments to ensure they have the best chance for survival – sometimes needing care for weeks or months before they can be released back into the ocean. When a sea turtle arrives at the Aquarium’s Sea Turtle Hospital, staff evaluate the rescued turtle by performing a thorough physical exam, blood work, and x-ray scans.

“The majority of the turtles arrive with serious ailments such as pneumonia, dehydration, traumatic injuries, or sepsis,” said Dr Melissa Joblon, director of animal health at the Aquarium. “During the busy admit period, most turtles receive a standard fluid plan and antibiotics; however, we aim to tailor our treatment plans to each individual as soon as caseload allows.”

To stop the Aquarium’s Sea Turtle Hospital from becoming overwhelmed with patients, the team works closely with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Fisheries Service alongside the non-profit organisation Turtles Fly Too, and other partners, to help transport and rehabilitate the animals. Over the last week, some 30 sea turtles were flown to North Carolina to free up space for new arrivals at the New England Aquarium’s facility.

In a conversation with NPR, Kennedy has said that a rapidly warming Gulf of Maine can shoulder much of the responsibility when it comes to the shift in sea turtles’ habitats. The Gulf of Maine is now believed to be one of the fastest warming regions in the ocean, according to findings from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Centres for Environmental Information.

“The phenomenon of the Gulf of Maine warming as quickly as it is and has been, is allowing these turtles that normally would be kept out of Cape Cod Bay due to that cold water, to kind of funnel into Cape Cod Bay for a good chunk of time during the summer,” said Kennedy.

Cold-stunned sea turtles require delicate and conscientious attention. Warming a hypothermic sea turtle up too fast can be deadly for them. Instead, the Aquarium gradually heats up individuals by around 10 degrees Fahrenheit a day, until they are swimming in the mid-70s.

“All the turtles that come in will get radiographs,” said Kennedy. “We see a lot of pneumonia, so we’ll have to treat those with antibiotics. The turtles all get fluid therapy and any emergency meds that they need. If their heart rates are really low, they’ll get epinephrine. If they’re not breathing, it will give them another stimulant drug to sort that out.”

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