An unusually high number of sea turtles are becoming stranded along the Georgia coast, and authorities say unseasonably warm ocean water temperatures are partly to blame.
More than two dozen dead sea turtles have been reported to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources in the first 12 weeks of this year. DNR biologist Mark Dodd said there are fewer than 10 during the same period in a typical year.
Dodd said that to some extent, the higher rate of strandings is due in part to the warm water temperatures.
Three species of turtles are represented in the strandings: Kemp's Ridley, loggerhead and green turtles. Each is endangered or threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act.