Wild Sea Turtle Cold Stunning Events

Cold stunning of sea turtles in Massachusetts Bay and Cape Cod is an annual winter welfare crisis causing thousands of turtles to wash ashore requiring emergency rehabilitation.

Key Facts

Cold stunning occurs when water temperatures drop rapidly, incapacitating sea turtles
Kemp's ridley, loggerhead, and green sea turtles are most commonly affected in Cape Cod Bay
The Mass Audubon Society and New England Aquarium coordinate mass stranding responses
Hundreds to over a thousand turtles strand annually in November-December in Massachusetts
Cold-stunned turtles face hypothermia, pneumonia, frostbite, and internal infection
Treatment involves gradual rewarming over days to prevent cardiovascular shock
Record cold stunning events in 2020 and 2022 exceeded 1,000 turtles each
Climate change is increasing turtle range northward, expanding the cold stunning problem

Welfare Considerations

Cold-stunned turtles are immobilized by extreme cold, unable to move or keep their heads above water. They aspirate water and develop pneumonia. Hypothermia causes metabolic shutdown. Turtles that wash ashore in Massachusetts face frostbite from air temperatures as well as internal damage from extended cold exposure. The mass response to cold stunning events - with hundreds of volunteers and professional rehabilitators working around the clock - represents community commitment to individual turtle welfare at extraordinary scale.

What You Can Do

Support the Mass Audubon Society turtle stranding response program
Volunteer for sea turtle stranding patrols in November-December on Cape Cod
Donate to New England Aquarium sea turtle rehabilitation programs
Report stranded turtles to the stranding network hotline rather than moving them
Support turtle-safe boating and bycatch reduction programs throughout the turtles' range