Mote encounters third set of entangled turtle tracks

For the third time in the past week, Mote Marine Laboratory’s Sea Turtle Patrol encountered entangled turtle tracks on Longboat Key.

During their morning patrol on July 12, volunteers found turtle tracks mixed with chair tracks. At this time, the exact location of the tracks isn’t confirmed. A chair was found in the water and placed back on the sand.

“It looked like the animal either was stuck and somebody took the chair off or the animal had released itself,” Mote’s Public Relations manager Shelby Isaacson said.

This entanglement follows two similar occurrences.

On Friday, July 7, a turtle got entangled with a pink, metal-framed beach chair on the Manatee County side of Longboat Key. Neither the turtle nor the chair have been found.

On Sunday, July 9, Mote’s patrol found another set of tracks entangled with chair tracks. That turtle released itself from the chair before entering the water.

If you see stranded turtles, call Mote’s Stranding Investigations Program at 941-988-0212.