Recent News
Bermuda Youth Sign Sargasso Sea DeclarationTuesday, March 18, 2014
Bermuda’s young people are setting the example for environmental awareness and conservation by signing a declaration to protect the Sargasso Sea.
Students will highlight Sargasso Sea at conference
Thursday, March 13, 2014
More than 80 Island schoolchildren are taking part in the biennial Bermuda Zoological Society’s (BZS) Youth Conference this week.
Protecting The Sargasso Sea Youth Conference
Thursday, March 13, 2014
The Bermuda Zoological Society’s [BZS] biennial Youth Conference is a two-day programme for middle and secondary students who have demonstrated interest and leadership in conservation and the environment.
Cahow Fossils Excavated In Southampton
Monday, March 10, 2014
The most recent newsletter of the Bermuda Zoological Society outlined the recent excavation of Cahow fossils in Southampton.
Romance Brews Between Tawny Frogmouths
Monday, February 10, 2014
Two Tawny Frogmouths who make their home at the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo [BAMZ] started spending some “special time” together and an egg appeared, however unfortunately the egg is not viable.
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All the latest updates and news from the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum, and Zoo, one of Bermuda's leading visitor attractions!
Excerpt from WILD News May 2018
This is Sheldon, a juvenile loggerhead turtle. Between December and March juvenile sea turtles (loggerheads, hawksbills and green sea turtles) will be swept up past Bermuda as they drift with their transient home of Sargassum. Sargassum is brown algae found in the Atlantic Ocean that forms dense floating masses called rafts which provide shelter, transport and food for many organisms. During this stage of their life (post hatchling), turtles are carried around with the currents. The Sargassum provides food such shrimp, tiny crabs and fish. Sea turtles eat whatever floats by and this often gets them into trouble. The Sargasso Sea is located in the North Atlantic Gyre and collects lots of microplastics. Sea turtles are not picky eaters and may eat the plastics This can cause an impaction of their digestive tract which can be life-threatening.
As they pass by Bermuda, they may be washed ashore by a winter storm or get picked up by birds that later drop them. As a result, these little critters can end up on one of our beaches or dropped amongst the rocks. The Wildlife Rehabilitation Department at BAMZ sees one or two post hatchling sea turtles a year. These post hatchlings are three to four inches in length and tend to be thin and exhausted from their journey. Because of their tiny size, they may have sustained injuries from predator attacks. We monitor them and give them time to rest and regain strength. Any injuries are treated and an appropriate amount of time is given to heal. We wait until the water warms up and we see large rafts of Sargassum returning offshore (May or June) before releasing them. By this time they have grown six to eight inches long. The release is done offshore so they can pick up the currents under a Sargassum raft and continue on their ocean journey. They will return to Bermuda again in 3-4 years as they move from their pelagic lifestyle to the reef shelf.
The current juvenile loggerhead was found on the beach at Willowbank on March 30, 2018. It appears healthy and is gaining weight. We hope to get it back out to the big blue in the near future. Note the tank it is currently in is actually the perfect spot for it at the moment. It would normally be in the open ocean all day in a vast sea of blue, and only given shelter by a Sargassum raft. The blue background is exactly what it would be seeing in the wild. Also, we can't tell the sex of the turtle at this age without a blood sample, so the sex remains unknown.