Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Rehabilitated Sea Turtles To Be Released In Juno Beach

These baby Loggerhead sea turtles hatched earlier this season on a Broward County beach.
COURTESY OF THE BROWARD COUNTY SEA TURTLE CONSERVATION PROGRAM
/
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

Two sea turtles that were rehabilitated from illnesses are scheduled to be released Thursday morning in Juno Beach.

Tiffany is an adult female hawksbill and Seabastian is a juvenile loggerhead. Staff at the Loggerhead Marinelife Center, where the turtles were treated, say they've recovered from infections and anemia.

It's a much-needed piece of good news for some of the oldest creatures on earth. Sea turtles have been around for more than 110 million years, but humans' impact on the environment is making it harder and harder for them to survive.

A red tide algae bloom on Florida's west coast this summer has killed dozens of sea turtles, as well as manatees and thousands of fish. Ocean pollution can make turtles ill -- particularly plastic bags, which turtles sometimes eat because of their resemblance to jellyfish. The number of male sea turtle hatchlings has declined, likely because of hotter nesting temperatures due to global warming and microplastics. And scientists suspect pollution and climate change may be playing a role in a virus that causes sea turtles to develop tumors.

Tiffany and Seabastian are expected to be released from the Loggerhead Marinelife Center (14200 US Highway 1, Juno Beach) at 10 a.m. Thursday.

Copyright 2020 WLRN 91.3 FM. To see more, visit .

Kate Stein can't quite explain what attracts her to South Florida. It's more than just the warm weather (although this Wisconsin native and Northwestern University graduate definitely appreciates the South Florida sunshine). It has a lot to do with being able to travel from the Everglades to Little Havana to Brickell without turning off 8th Street. It's also related to Stein's fantastic coworkers, whom she first got to know during a winter 2016 internship.Officially, Stein is WLRN's environment, data and transportation journalist. Privately, she uses her job as an excuse to rove around South Florida searching for stories à la Carl Hiaasen and Edna Buchanan. Regardless, Stein speaks Spanish and is always thrilled to run, explore and read.