"The best thing that we can do is be prepared. Have a plan in place and be as prepared as we can be for large amounts of animals and turtles coming into our area," said Melissa Ranly, Loggerhead Marinelife Center Hospital Coordinator.
When it comes to turtles in the Gulf, and the oil spill, the first problem will be initial contact.
"Obviously since they need to breathe air, they can come up to the surface and get coated in the oil," said Ranly.
But while oil on the bodies of turtles is of great concern, a potentially more dangerous scenario is when turtles ingest oil.
"Sometimes the oil will turn into tar and they can ingest pieces of it or food that's got the oil on it, and the tar can even cause a problem with them opening their mouth and getting food in the future," said Ranly.
Because the impact of the spill has so many variables right now, it's impossible to know what will be needed. Preparation is the key.
"The advantage is that we know about it ahead of time, unlike the cold stun event we dealt with in January which started and immediately animals were stranding," said Ranly.
You may recall that during the cold stun event this past winter, hundreds of turtles needed to be rescued and cared for. That event may have given experts a better understanding of what might be needed for this event.
"We went and purchased a lot of baby pools and needed extra supplies to handle the patient load," said Ranly.
The hope is that the containment efforts work, because this time of year is crucial for turtles.
"Especially during nesting season if there's a way to contain the oil before it hits the beaches, that would be the most ideal scenario" said Ranly.
I honestly hope that the oil doesn't affect our endangered sea turtles among all the other wonderful wildlife and beautiful ecosystems we have down here but if it does you know where I'll be and I'll report back to you guys!
Keep Wagging everyone and hope for the best!
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