Sea Turtle rescues on the rise in Sarasota County

The weather seems to have calmed down, but scientists at Mote Marine Laboratory in Sarasota are working non-stop.

"They just keep coming in. They come in throughout the day," said Amber Shaw.

Shaw is the sea turtle care and research assistant and she has seen buckets and buckets of baby sea turtles arrive daily.

"Even this last weekend we had 150 that we admitted in our hospital tanks," she explained.

More than a thousand sea turtle hatchlings have been brought to Mote Marine Laboratory.

Of that number 300 have been admitted. Many are wash-backs and it's the largest number the facility has ever seen.

"We look at what condition they are in. Are they weak? Are they skinny? Do they have any injuries?" she added.

Wash-backs happen after sea turtles hatch, they try to go into the water, but can't. The recent storms maybe to blame.

Strong currents could have pushed the turtles back to shore, making them too weak for their journey.

This weekend Sarasota County Sheriff's Deputies and Sarasota Officers brought dozens of baby turtles to Mote.

"It is difficult to say what is causing it. A couple of months ago was our peak nesting season. We had a large number of females nesting so we have a large numbers of hatchling at this time, but it is still not a cause or reason for why we are getting so many in," Shaw told FOX 13.

Researchers now work to heal the turtle. Each is labeled with a bright ID, for scientists to keep track of them.

They are given shots and fed till they are back to their normal energy. If you do come across hatchlings in distress you too can help.

"You can put hatchlings in a bucket with sand, cover them with a towel and keep them in a cool dry area without air conditioning until we can respond," said Shaw.

If you see a turtle in trouble you are asked to contact Mote Marine Laboratory at 941-988-0212.