Over 150 sea turtles have received treatment this season for “life-threatening medical conditions” prompted by hypothermia in the New England Aquarium, based in the US city of Boston.
The aquarium officials said critically endangered species were also affected.
The animals, rescued by the volunteers working for the Massachusetts Audubon Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary, included 120 critically endangered Kemp’s ridley turtles and 33 green turtles.
“In years past, cold-stunned sea turtles would begin to wash ashore in late October,” said the aquarium’s director of rescue and rehabilitation, Adam Kennedy. This year, however, the stranding were only reported in the second half of November.
“Milder weather means the waters of Cape Cod Bay are staying warmer for a prolonged period…