Cold Snap

Over 1000 sea turtles were stunned in recent cold snaps. (News source.)

Rehabbers have been busy. It has also taken out iguanas and other lizards in southern Florida. One girl has been defrosting some of the lizards.

Hope the Honeymoon's Better...

A marriage proposal on a SC beach ended in an official warning after illegal candles caused 60 or so baby loggerhead sea turtles to turn in the wrong direction, leading away from the sea. (News source.)

Threats to Green Sea Turtles

Transcript of an Australian news interview here.

Turtles & the Law

A Massachusetts developer has run into restrictions from box turtle conservation requirements. (News source.)

The US Army wants to relocate 1100 endangered California desert tortoises. (News source.)

The USFWS is reviewing the desert tortoise for possible ESA inclusion. (News source.)

A Canadian turtle keeper was sentenced to nine months in jail for keeping threatened species, mostly Blanding's turtles. (News source.)

Sea turtles and their eggs will be banned for possession, consumption, etc., in the Bahamas soon. (News source.)

Vietnamese officials seized 10 tons of tortoise and pangolin shells smuggled in from Indonesia. (News source.)

Poachers continue to threaten the Madagascar spider tortoise. (News source.)

Sea Turtle Smuggling

Indonesian police seized 45 poached green sea turtles. (News source.)

Other Turtle News

Ravens are on a hit list for killing endangered desert tortoises. (News source.)

A device for fishing nets that might protect sea turtles better is not enthusiastically welcomed by fishermen. (News source.)

Researchers found a leatherback sea turtle tagged in Nova Scotia has turned up in Colombia waters. (News source.)

Turtle Legal Issues

Florida has introduced their new rules on taking freshwater turtles. (News source.)

A Maldives resort could be in trouble for their unlicensed "conservation" project with sea turtle eggs. (News source.)

A nearly $3 million "ecopassage" under a busy Florida highway is mostly to save turtles (and protect motorists), but is controversial in Congress. (News source.)

Polish customs officials arrested a Ukrainian man for smuggling tortoises. (News source.)

A Filipino man was arrested in Malaysia for smuggling/selling turtle eggs. (News source.)

Turtle News

Indonesians on the island of Runduma are protecting the local sea turtles now, instead of using their eggs. (News source.)

The rare western pond turtle found in Washington state recently turns out to be an escaped family pet, but the owners probably won't get it back. (News source.)

Emergency fishing regs put into effect banning longlines in the Gulf of Mexico may become permanent. Longlines injure sea turtles and other non-target species. (News source.)

Dead turtles turning up in Menasha, WI, are worrying conservationists. (News source.)

A Florida man was charged with poaching sea turtle eggs. (News source.)

Leatherback Population

A leatherback sea turtle population that nests in Gabon has been noted as the world's largest. (Eurekalert.)

Sea Turtle Egg Thief

A man has been arrested in Florida for poaching 119 sea turtle eggs. (News source.)

Herp Legality

Florida wildlife officers arrested a man who had a sea turtle in his cooler. (News source.)

The UK is considering easing the captive wild animal regulations a bit. (News source.)

Wildlife officers in India held a man for possessing sand boas illegally. (News source.)

Sea Turtles Nesting

It's that time of year again. Sea turtles are nesting in Florida and Texas.

One Turtle Patrol is using a terrier to find nests. (News source.)

Leatherbacks

An article on these sea turtles, here.

Turtle Pick Indictment

A California woman was indicted for illegally imported guitar picks made from hawksbill sea turtle shells. (News source.)

Turtle Conservation

Arkansas Game and Fish has turned down petitions to end turtle harvesting in that state. (News source.)

Iowa conservationists are concerned with an increase in turtle harvesting in that state. (News source.)

The Dominican Republic has cracked down on souvenirs made from endangered sea turtle shell. (News source.)

Turtle Death by Pollution

Up to a third of leatherback turtle mortalities are due to ingested plastic garbage. (News source.)

Tortoise News

Australian loggerhead turtles ride the ocean currents to the waters off South America. (News source.)

Some conservationists argue that the Red List of endangered animals includes species that are actually safe from extinction (including several sea turtles) which takes conservation focus and dollars away from species that truly do need the help. (News source.)

Herps in Crime News

Approx. 550 Afghan tortoises were recovered from smugglers in Pakistan. (News source.)

A number of rare mammals, reptiles, and invertebrates were stolen from a warehouse in Australia. (News source.)

An official function in Malaysia has turned into a scandal as illegal sea turtle eggs were served. (News source.)

Sea Turtles

News on surveying leatherback turtle nests on Bougainville Island in Papua New Guinea here.

Turtle News

Tourists to Bald Head Island, NC, have the option of a "turtle walk," to view nesting sea turtles. (News source.)

A cold front in the Florida Keys is causing sea turtles to get sick. (News source.)

Turtle skulls are being studied for their resilience, for possible technological modeling. (News source.)