One of the worldB次元官网网址檚 smallest and most endangered turtle species was found on the shores QuebecB次元官网网址檚 Magdalen Islands last week B次元官网网址� a first in the province.
Veterinarian Jean-Simon Richard says he was contacted last Saturday after someone found a beached KempB次元官网网址檚 ridley sea turtle on the archipelago in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
Richard says attempts were made to revive the turtle but proved unsuccessful and the animal will be sent for a necropsy to confirm a cause of death.
He says he believes the turtle swam farther north than usual because it was attracted to the warming waters and likely died from hypothermia.
Kathleen Martin, executive director of the Canadian Sea Turtle Network, says the discovery is significant because KempB次元官网网址檚 ridley turtles migrate from the Gulf of Mexico and that sea turtle species are in peril.
Martin says Canada will have to play an increasingly important role in the protection of endangered sea turtles as climate change creates warmer waters that bring unexpected marine animals to the countryB次元官网网址檚 shores.
