Sadie Hawkins, a hawksbill turtle being treated at Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in this June 13 photo, was moved to Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach after the nonprofit Coastal Stewards closed Gumbo Limbo’s sea turtle rehab unit. Of the 13 turtles being treated at the time of the closure, only three have yet to be relocated. One is to be transferred to another facility and two are expected to be released into the ocean this month. Photos by Tim Stepien/The Coastal Star
The gift shop at the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center is locked and empty, 10 of the center’s final 13 sea turtle patients have been transferred to other facilities or released, and no one can yet say whether a turtle rehabilitation unit will ever return to Boca Raton.
“We’re open to discussing potential new partnerships for sea turtle rehabilitation and we haven’t decided on how the gift shop space will be used,” said Deputy City Manager Chrissy Gibson…