13-Gallon Plastic Bag Found In Dead Sea Turtle, Officials Say

SOUTHAMPTON, NY — A dead sea turtle found on the beach in Southampton served as a tragic warning to those littering the beaches and waterways with plastic, officials said.

According to Rachel Bosworth of the Atlantic Marine Conservation Society, a leatherback sea turtle was first reported to AMCS on Friday evening as being deceased and beached in Southampton.

Overnight it washed back out and traveled west to just east of Shinnecock East County Park, Bosworth said.

Campers in the area had reportedly mistaken the sea turtle for being alive and had pushed it back out into the water.

"It is important to note that the public should not touch sea turtles or marine mammals," Bosworth said.

Sick, injured, or deceased marine animals should be reported to the NYS Stranding Hotline at 631-369-9829 so the appropriate organization can respond, she said.

The turtle then washed up again and was reported to AMCS; two staff biologists and an intern responded and conducted the necropsy on Saturday morning. Southampton Town police and maintenance were onhand for security and disposal, Bosworth said.

"The team initially found that the juvenile, four-foot long female turtle's lungs were congested and suggested drowning. However, a definitive cause of death could not be determined and samples will be sent to a pathologist to help confirm the cause of death," she said.

However, Bosworth said, "A large plastic bag was found within the intestines and appeared to have recently been ingested as it had just passed through the stomach."

The bag was a kitchen-sized trash bag, approximately 13 gallons; four other pieces of plastic were found within the sea turtle's gastrointestinal tract, including black garbage bags and food wrappings, she said.

The incident highlights that fact that it's "Plastic-Free July" and many groups are holding various campaigns to raise awareness of the negative impacts of single-use plastics, Bosworth said.

AMCS is hosting two screenings of the short documentary STRAWS, by Linda Booker, with Group for the East End and Surfrider on Thursday, July 5 at Downs Farm Preserve in Cutchogue and Thursday, July 19 at the Greenport Theatre.

"Marine debris poses a serious threat to marine life," ACMS wrote on social media. "We are committed to promoting marine conservation through action, including beach cleanups, data collection, stranding investigations, and research. You can join us. Keep our beaches clean, skip single-use plastics like bags and straws, ask friends and family to do the same, and report strandings and sightings. Conservation starts with you."

Patch courtesy photo of Hannah Winslow, a field biologist with AMCS.