An off-course green sea turtle, found severely hypothermic last weekend on the southern Washington coast, was showing positive signs of recovery today at the Oregon Coast Aquarium.While the 28-inch-long turtle isn't completely in the clear, it is eating and its body temperature has risen to a normal 77 degrees, said Jim Burke, director of animal husbandry at the Newport aquarium.
"We're still a little guarded with her condition, but she's up to a stable temperature and she's being given antibacterial and antifungal medications," he said. "She's eating some lettuce and some algae. We're hoping she'll continue to eat more."
The aquarium also is caring for an Olive Ridley sea turtle found stranded -- but in better condition -- at the same time at Agate Beach.
The green sea turtle and the Olive Ridley are on the federal endangered species list.
The turtles, both females, are native to warm Pacific waters. While they might be found migrating far to the west of Oregon's coast, they are extremely rare visitors to the state's beaches. Each probably was caught in off-shore pockets of warm water, or gyres, that carried them north and then dissipated into frigid waters off the coast, Burke said.
A mild El Nino effect this year means that warm ocean currents might carry more sea turtles into Oregon's unforgiving cold waters.
The aquarium cared for several turtles stranded by El Nino conditions in 1997-98.
The cold waters -- less than 50 degrees -- pushed the turtles into a hibernation-like state called brumation. Their metabolism slowed, they couldn't navigate and faced certain death.
Burke estimated the green sea turtle had been in Oregon's waters for several weeks.
"Both of them were in thermal shock," he said. "Once they're cold, their ability to do anything really shuts down. Once they got to this cold place, they were not ever going to get back."
The green sea turtle was found at Long Beach and taken to the Seaside Aquarium. The Oregon Coast Aquarium, which is designated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to rehabilitate and transport sea turtles, picked the turtle up and placed it in a tank with 75- to 80-degree water.
An X-ray exam found that one of the green sea turtle's front flippers was broken, the bones completely separated. The injury probably occurred six to 12 months ago, Burke said, and the turtle seemed to have adapted.
Once the turtles are healthy enough for travel, they'll be transferred to sea turtle rehabilitation center at Sea World San Diego. There, the green sea turtle might have surgery on its flipper.
Both turtles probably will be released to the wild -- and warm -- waters off Southern California early next summer.
-- Abby Haight