It's all about the turtles.

 

A hatchling being weighed

Sometimes, working with animals on a day-to-day basis can get repetitive, just like with any job.  So branching out to do an extra conservation project can be just the thing to reignite the love for the business.  For Josie Romasco, an aquarist at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, developing and working on the Sea Turtle Second Chance Program is an opportunity that’s both “professionally rewarding and personally fulfilling.”  The program started a few years ago when Josie rose to the challenge, but it would have taken much longer to get to grow as big as it has without the help of the Pepsi Refresh contest, in which the Zoo won $25,000 in order to help rehabilitate and release endangered sea turtles.  

Why sea turtles in Pittsburgh?  As Josie explains, “When we vacation, where do you think we go?  Where the sea turtles are.”  For those who live in coastal areas, the etiquette on how to protect and not disturb sea turtles is part of everyday life, but those of us in Pittsburgh might not be so well-informed.  By exhibiting the animals as part of an educational exhibit, visitors who might otherwise know nothing about these amazing creatures now have a chance to be exposed to their inspirational story. 

Two of the new tanks, which Josie helped to design

The Zoo has a partnership with the North Carolina Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores, where people check recently vacated nests for any hatchlings that may have been left behind.  Most of the stragglers are sent back out to sea fairly quickly, but others need a little extra help, and that’s where the Pittsburgh Zoo can step in.  The North Carolina Aquarium sends nine hatchlings at a time out to other zoos, and Pittsburgh is lucky enough to hold three of those spots.  With brand-new, specially designed tanks, the zoo hopes to be able to display two hatchling turtles and a yearling to the public at one time, and then release at least one turtle per year back out into the wild.  

Last year, one of the first turtles that the Zoo acquired, Smitty, was released, and the public wants to know where he is and how he’s doing.  Sadly, there’s no way to find that out, but hopefully in future releases the turtles will be outfitted with satellite tags so that their progress can be tracked.  This will not only be fulfilling for the visitors and zookeepers who have come to know the turtles, but will help advance scientific knowledge as well.  

Yearling loggerhead L.C.

Three loggerhead turtles are currently in residence at the Zoo – L.C., who’s about a year and a half old, and Ghostbuster and Little Yinzer, who are about 6 months old.   Listening to Josie talk with such excitement about the plans for the turtles and the exhibits, I can’t help but share her enthusiasm.  This program definitely has the potential to have a big impact on turtles and people alike!