30 sea turtles rescued from Cape Cod will soon be transported to North Carolina by plane.
More than 180 endangered, hypothermic sea turtles have been rescued from Cape waters in less than two weeks, and volunteer pilots are flying some of the re-warmed creatures from New England Aquarium’s Marine Animal Care Center.
The second flight of Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles is departing from Marshfield Municipal airport Wednesday morning; 30 turtles were taken to the National Aquarium in Baltimore last Sunday.
In the past several years, the number of cold-stunned sea turtles stranding on Cape shores has more than tripled from an annual average of about 90, to more than 300.
The turtles departing Wednesday will finish their rehab in North Carolina before being released back into the water.