POSTED: 8:57 am EDT September 16, 2005
UPDATED: 11:02 am EDT September 16, 2005
PONCE INLET, Fla. -- It's not just people who suffer when hurricanes hit. Florida's endangered sea turtles are among the most vulnerable because they're often the first to get hit by an approaching storm.
"When we see the storms coming in, we know we're not getting a day off," turtle specialist Michelle Bauer said.
Every hurricane season brings in a new wave of sea turtles to the Marine Science Center in Ponce Inlet. Many wash in with the rough surf, displaced and in desparate need of medical attention.
"When they come in, they're dehydrated. We give them fluids. We offer them food. We try to get their strength up, and then we're taking them out to where they're supposed to be," Bauer said.
A 268-pound loggerhead, appropriately named Katrina, washed ashore in Brevard County on Labor Day weekend. She's still very sick but getting the best possible care.
"They're very resilient. They will find a way. They've been around for a long period of time, so we've got to keep the environment healthy for them to stay around," Bauer said.
The storms also take a major toll on nesting sea turtles.
"(They're caught in) rough surf, so the animals can't get back out. (It's) also taking the beach away and eroding the nests," Bauer said.
Some other loggerhead hatchlings are also at the Marine Science Center after surviving Hurricane Ophelia. A total of 405 were rescued. They'll also be rehabilitated and released back into the ocean.
"It makes us feel great because there are a lot of people who go into rescuing them and bringing them here, and then we collect them here. We treat the ones that are thin medically, and then we get them back out to where they belong," Bauer said.
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