[Pick] Cold wave hits Texas, sea turtle situation unable to control body temperature

It is known that thousands of sea turtles who cannot control their own body temperature have passed out from hypothermia in a record cold wave that hit the central and southern United States.

On the 17th local time, foreign media such as the New York Times reported that about 3,500 sea turtles were rescued off the coast of South Padre Island, Texas.

The worst winter storm accompanied by heavy snowfall in southern Texas, where the average video was maintained above 10 degrees Celsius, fell to -22 degrees below zero and suffered massive blackouts.

The same was true for the sea turtle, a thermophilic animal in Texas, that was hit directly by the cold.

The body temperature of a changeable animal changes in real time according to the ambient temperature, that is, it cannot control its body temperature by itself, so it has no choice but to rely on changes in body temperature on the surrounding environment.

Therefore, sea turtles who are susceptible to cold lose their ability to survive due to the sudden drop in water temperature and pass out. It is said that if a turtle loses its ability to exercise due to hypothermia, it cannot swim or eat properly, and even put it in a 2cm deep basin can drown.

When news of the paralyzed turtles being pushed to the shore, volunteers set out to rescue the turtles. The turtles were transported to shelters by car or boat, and blankets were placed in the back seats of the car to keep them warm while on the move.

About 3,500 turtles rescued in this way are now known as Sea Turtle Inc., a non-profit organization based in Texas. Staying in the facility. The group will protect it until the weather gets warmer.

An official from the group said, “The size of tortoises stunned by the cold is the largest in the past few decades,” and “it will affect the number of individuals.” All five species of sea turtles currently living in Texas are classified as endangered species.

This is’News Pick’.

(Photo =’Sea Turtle, Inc’ Facebook,’TexasGameWarden’,’GaigeDavila’ Twitter)

(Video composition: Kim Hwi-ran, editor: Park Seung-yeon)