Cold-stunned sea turtles rescued by volunteers in cape cod as winter waters turn deadly

Dozens of volunteers are working around the clock to save hundreds of young sea turtles that have become trapped and cold-stunned in Cape Cod’s frigid waters. Armed with flashlights, rescue teams brave freezing temperatures and bitter winds to patrol the bayside beaches at night, searching along the high-tide lines where seaweed accumulates—the most likely spots to find stranded turtles.

The crisis unfolds each winter when young sea turtles, lured to the Gulf of Maine by unusually warm waters rich with food, become trapped as temperatures suddenly plummet. These juvenile turtles cannot escape the bay’s hook-shaped geography quickly enough to avoid the cold snap, leaving them hypothermic and unable to swim or dive for food.

“That’s where you’re most likely to find a turtle,” explains Mark Faherty, science coordinator leading the rescue efforts, referring to the seaweed-marked tide lines that volunteers methodically scan each night. The cold-stunning phenomenon renders the turtles lethargic and vulnerable, washing them ashore where they face certain death without human intervention.

A comprehensive rescue and rehabilitation response is now underway, with marine animal hospitals and wildlife centers working to warm and treat the affected turtles. This annual emergency highlights the increasing challenges that climate change poses to marine wildlife, as shifting ocean temperatures create deadly traps for species trying to adapt to rapidly changing conditions. The rescued turtles will be rehabilitated and eventually released in warmer southern waters.