Watch Four Sea Turtles Get Released at Point Pleasant Beach

They are healthy and ready to be let go. Here's everything you need to know if you want to be there!

Sea Turtle Recovery (STR) is ready to return four sea turtles to the ocean at Point Pleasant Beach on Wednesday, Sept. 5th at 7 am.

STR is a nonprofit hospital at Turtle Back Zoo that has rehabilitated and released 23 endangered and threatened sea turtles. This time around, they will be releasing Tammie, an adult Loggerhead, and three juvenile Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles.

Sea Turtle Recovery is the only facility in our state able to rehabilitate sea turtles needing long term care, and this will be the group’s second release here at the Jersey Shore. You may remember last year when STR released Humphry, an 87-pound Loggerhead sea turtle, off of Point Pleasant Beach.

This release, though, will be “larger” because they plan to release their first ever adult Loggerhead sea turtle that weighs over 250 pounds!

Tammie was rescued by the crew of the United States Coast Guard Cutter Lawrence Lawson, who found her floating and unable to dive off the coast of Cape May while on routine patrol. The crew used a deployable response boat and cargo net to bring Tammie onto the ship, while STR staff came aboard to stabilize her and help bring her to shore.

Tammie was rehabilitated for injuries received from propeller strikes across her carapace, top shell, and she is now ready to return to the ocean. She's been in rehab for over a year.

Also being released is Glacier who has recovered from a broken flipper, Shellbie who recovered from fungal pneumonia, and Junior who is now healthy after a respiratory infection.  These Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles are critically endangered, which makes their return home vital in the effort to save their species.

STR's Brandi Biehl says that to see the fight to survive in these sea turtle’s eyes makes you realize how fragile our oceans are and how it is our responsibility to keep it safe for the animals that call it home.

The release strategy is a coordinated effort to ensure that the sea turtles return to the ocean safely. Jenkinson’s Aquarium and Boardwalk, the Point Pleasant Dive Team, Point Pleasant Mayor Stephen Reid and Turtle Back Zoo have all assisted Sea Turtle Recovery’s beach preparations.

The release is scheduled sometime between 7 and 7:30 am at Water Street near Jenkinson’s Aquarium, so get to the beach early that day to be able to catch a glimpse of the sea turtles that are returning home!

There will then be an after-release breakfast starting at 8:30 at White Sands Resort and Spa for just $15 for those interested in videos and stories behind the turtles’ amazing recovery. Also, STR staff will have a table at Jenkinson’s Aquarium between Noon and 1:30 pm to teach more about sea turtle conservation.

If you can’t attend these release celebrations, Sea Turtle recovery will be sharing the release video via their Facebook page. CLICK HERE to see it that day.

For more info on STR and sea turtle release information, CLICK HERE.

Donations can be made to Sea Turtle Recovery at PO Box 497, West Orange, NJ 07052.