Dead, Endangered Leatherback Sea Turtle Washes Up In Westbrook

WESTBROOK, CT — A leatherback sea turtle, the largest in the world, was found dead on the Long Island Sound shore in Westbrook Monday.

An endangered species, the highly migratory sea turtle that swims more than 10,000 miles a year between nesting and foraging grounds, can dive nearly 4,000 feet, deeper than most marine mammals, according to the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration.

Leatherback turtles are listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act and, NOAA says, face threats on both nesting beaches and in the marine environment.

The greatest of these threats worldwide are incidental capture in fishing gear and harvest of leatherback eggs and adults, NOA says.

The turtle was photographed by a number of people and shared on social media including Facebook.

The New Haven Register reported that Madison resident Christopher Walker found the turtle and contacted the Mystic Aquarium.

Dale Wobrink, senior director of public relations, said the Aquarium received the report and is working with wildlife officials and "beach management" on how best to dispose of the turtle's carcass as, given the amount of decomposition, she said "unfortunately there's nothing to collect, no real data" that can be unearthed given the turtle's condition. Also, it was decapitated.

She said the Aquarium is in a "holding pattern" as they work on proceeding with how to remove the turtle.

She said that it's "not frequent" but also not rare that sea turtles are seen locally, or wash up, adding that in the past several years, marine biologists at the Aquarium have only been called out five times for sea turtles.

Wolbrink said that the Mystic Aquarium and scientists at Yale will be studying why sea turtles are not a common visitor to nearby waters.

"We're not surprised but it's not something we expect," she said.