A very busy stranding day

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Today was a very busy day for NECWA staff, volunteers and interns. We started our day by dividing up into teams. Some walked beach and scouted for stranded animals in the Wellfleet area while others manned the NECWA table at the DY Holiday Craft Fair. By late afternoon, we thought we were in the clear but then we got multiple calls about live stranded animals in different areas of the Cape.

Anzo and Matt rescuing the Kemp's Ridley

First our NECWA college volunteers found a live Kemps Ridley sea turtle just south of Duck Harbor, Wellfleet and passed it off to Mass Audubon at Wellfleet Bay. Then one of our volunteers's husband, Jason, called in about a stranded torpedo ray off Cooks Brook Beach in Eastham. This fish was still alive so Jason got it back into deep water and the animal swam away.

Stranded live torpedo ray

Seconds later, calls came in about a live ocean sunfish stranded in shallow water between Cooks Brook Beach and Campground Beach. With the help of local residents, our staff (Krill and Mary Jo), interns (Jack) and volunteers (Jade, Anzo, Matt and Jason), we were able to drag the sunfish back into deeper water.

The sun had set by the time the team got back to their cars and although everyone was wet and cold, we were all excited about our success. There is no guarantee that the ocean sunfish will survive as water temperatures are very low. Like sea turtles, ocean sunfish can not tolerate prolonged cold temperatures and will become cold-stunned or cold-shocked. But we are hoping that our efforts will make a difference for this animal and all we can do is try to help. So proud of our all-volunteer, grassroots team of really dedicated and hardworking community members. Thank you everyone for an amazing day.


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