Sea Turtle Strandings in the Gulf of Mexico
 Kemp's Ridley Turtle (Lepidochelys kempii) Photo: NOAA » Sea turtle photos |
Increase in Sea Turtle Strandings
The Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network (STSSN) has documented large numbers of stranded sea turtles in the north-central Gulf of Mexico in 2010-2012. The majority of these turtles have been endangered Kemp's ridleys, loggerhead, and green turtles. The STSSN is monitoring and investigating this increase. Please refer to our FAQs for more information.
Data
Data are compiled through the efforts of network participants who document sea turtle strandings in their respective areas and contribute those data to the centralized STSSN database.
2013 Sea Turtle Strandings Documented in AL, LA, MS, and TX (upper TX coast: zone 18)
216 total strandings in 2013, through April 28, 2013
| Alabama Strandings |
2013 Total |
Jan 2013 |
Feb 2013 |
Mar 2013 |
Apr 2013 |
May 2013 |
June 2013 |
July 2013 |
Aug 2013 |
Sep 2013 |
Oct 2013 |
Nov 2013 |
Dec 2013 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loggerhead | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Kemp's ridley | 9 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Unidentified | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 11 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 8 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Louisiana Strandings |
2013 Total |
Jan 2013 |
Feb 2013 |
Mar 2013 |
Apr 2013 |
May 2013 |
June 2013 |
July 2013 |
Aug 2013 |
Sep 2013 |
Oct 2013 |
Nov 2013 |
Dec 2013 |
| Loggerhead | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Green | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Leatherback | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Kemp's ridley | 51 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 48 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Unidentified | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 65 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 60 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Mississippi Strandings |
2013 Total |
Jan 2013 |
Feb 2013 |
Mar 2013 |
Apr 2013 |
May 2013 |
June 2013 |
July 2013 |
Aug 2013 |
Sep 2013 |
Oct 2013 |
Nov 2013 |
Dec 2013 |
| Loggerhead | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Kemp's ridley | 89 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 87 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 91 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 88 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Texas Strandings (for the Upper Coast: Zone 18) |
2013 Total |
Jan 2013 |
Feb 2013 |
Mar 2013 |
Apr 2013 |
May 2013 |
June 2013 |
July 2013 |
Aug 2013 |
Sep 2013 |
Oct 2013 |
Nov 2013 |
Dec 2013 |
| Loggerhead | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Green | 9 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 4 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Kemp's ridley | 36 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 35 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Unidentified | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Total | 49 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 43 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
2013 Map of Sea Turtle Strandings in the Gulf of Mexico
This map represents the sea turtle strandings documented from January 1, 2013-April 28, 2013 for which location information has been received. Each species is shown in a different shape.
2012 Sea Turtle Strandings Documented in AL, LA, MS, and TX (upper TX coast: zone 18)
466 total strandings in 2012
| Alabama Strandings |
2012 Total |
Jan 2012 |
Feb 2012 |
Mar 2012 |
Apr 2012 |
May 2012 |
June 2012 |
July 2012 |
Aug 2012 |
Sep 2012 |
Oct 2012 |
Nov 2012 |
Dec 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loggerhead | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Green | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Leatherback | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Kemp's ridley | 52 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 19 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Unidentified | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 65 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 21 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 1 |
| Louisiana Strandings |
2012 Total |
Jan 2012 |
Feb 2012 |
Mar 2012 |
Apr 2012 |
May 2012 |
June 2012 |
July 2012 |
Aug 2012 |
Sep 2012 |
Oct 2012 |
Nov 2012 |
Dec 2012 |
| Loggerhead | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Green | 9 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Kemp's ridley | 100 | 3 | 4 | 37 | 20 | 16 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Unidentified | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 127 | 5 | 5 | 41 | 23 | 18 | 10 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Mississippi Strandings |
2012 Total |
Jan 2012 |
Feb 2012 |
Mar 2012 |
Apr 2012 |
May 2012 |
June 2012 |
July 2012 |
Aug 2012 |
Sep 2012 |
Oct 2012 |
Nov 2012 |
Dec 2012 |
| Loggerhead | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Green | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kemp's ridley | 153 | 2 | 0 | 56 | 47 | 20 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Unidentified | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 162 | 4 | 0 | 58 | 49 | 20 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Texas Strandings (for the Upper Coast: Zone 18) |
2012 Total |
Jan 2012 |
Feb 2012 |
Mar 2012 |
Apr 2012 |
May 2012 |
June 2012 |
July 2012 |
Aug 2012 |
Sep 2012 |
Oct 2012 |
Nov 2012 |
Dec 2012 |
| Loggerhead | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Green | 34 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| Leatherback | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hawksbill | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kemp's ridley | 60 | 1 | 2 | 18 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| Unidentified | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 112 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 27 | 19 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 12 |
2012 Map of Sea Turtle Strandings in the Gulf of Mexico
This map represents the sea turtle strandings documented from January 1, 2012-November 9, 2012 for which location information has been received. Each species is shown in a different shape.
2011 Sea Turtle Strandings Documented in AL, LA, and MS
525 total strandings in 2011, through December 31, 2011
*2011 data are pending validation
| Alabama Strandings |
2011 Total |
Jan 2011 |
Feb 2011 |
Mar 2011 |
Apr 2011 |
May 2011 |
June 2011 |
July 2011 |
Aug 2011 |
Sep 2011 |
Oct 2011 |
Nov 2011 |
Dec 2011 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loggerhead | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Green | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Kemp's ridley | 66 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 21 | 11 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Unidentified | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 94 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 27 | 16 | 16 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 |
| Louisiana Strandings |
2011 Total |
Jan 2011 |
Feb 2011 |
Mar 2011 |
Apr 2011 |
May 2011 |
June 2011 |
July 2011 |
Aug 2011 |
Sep 2011 |
Oct 2011 |
Nov 2011 |
Dec 2011 |
| Loggerhead | 19 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Green | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kemp's ridley | 104 | 0 | 2 | 15 | 24 | 13 | 21 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 4 |
| Unidentified | 19 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Total | 148 | 2 | 4 | 22 | 29 | 19 | 32 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 6 |
| Mississippi Strandings |
2011 Total |
Jan 2011 |
Feb 2011 |
Mar 2011 |
Apr 2011 |
May 2011 |
June 2011 |
July 2011 |
Aug 2011 |
Sep 2011 |
Oct 2011 |
Nov 2011 |
Dec 2011 |
| Loggerhead | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Green | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Kemp's ridley | 265 | 2 | 1 | 47 | 128 | 31 | 31 | 14 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| Unidentified | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 283 | 3 | 1 | 48 | 134 | 33 | 33 | 17 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
2011 Map of Sea Turtle Strandings in the Gulf of Mexico
This map represents the sea turtle strandings documented from January 1, 2011-December 31, 2011 for which location information has been received. Each species is shown in a different shape.
*2011 data are pending validation
What is the STSSN?
The Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network (STSSN) was formally established in 1980 to collect information on and document strandings of marine turtles along the U.S. Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic coasts. The network encompasses the coastal areas of the 18 states from Maine through Texas, and includes portions of the U.S. Caribbean.
What is a "stranding"?
Strandings are defined as turtles that wash ashore, dead or alive, or are found floating dead or alive (generally in a weakened condition).
What is causing the increase in strandings?
There are many possible reasons for the increase in strandings in the Northern Gulf of Mexico, both natural and human caused. We are working with the STSSN and the states to investigate potential causes, including:
- fishing activities that may result in turtle bycatch and mortality
- biotoxins, such as harmful algal blooms, which can occur in the Gulf of Mexico
- possible impacts from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Efforts are underway to collect sea turtle carcasses for examination to try to determine the cause of death. A cause of death in sea turtles is often difficult to pinpoint, especially in carcasses that are not fresh. Most sea turtle carcasses wash ashore moderately or severely decomposed and some are too decomposed to provide meaningful information.
What sea turtle species can be found in the area?
There are 5 species of sea turtles known to inhabit the waters of the Gulf of Mexico and U.S. Atlantic, and all are protected under the Endangered Species Act:
- loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta)
- green turtle (Chelonia mydas)
- Kemp's ridley turtle (Lepidochelys kempi)
- hawksbill turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata)
- leatherback turtle (Dermochelys coriacea)
More Information
To learn more about sea turtles and how NOAA was involved in their rescue during the Deepwater Horizon BP oil spill, please visit our websites.
Updated: May 1, 2013
