The Two Oceans Aquarium has received word from concerned members of the public that baby turtles are being sold at the Hout Bay harbour! Fortunately, one of the women who happened to buy one brought it straight to us.

It’s that time of the year when stormy sea conditions off the Cape Peninsula wash juvenile turtles ashore where they are discovered by concerned Capetonians. Just today we received three little loggerheads, which were found stranded on beaches, suffering from cold and dehydration.

But we’ve also been alerted to the fact that juvenile turtles are being offered for sale by men at the Hout Bay harbour. 

Please don’t buy

We have informed officials of Oceans & Coasts and the SPCA, and we urge the public, who may think turtles will make cute pets, to not buy these animals.

These turtles are literally out of their depth as they are warm-water ocean creatures, having been swept down from the northern coast of KwaZulu-Natal (where they hatch) in the mighty Agulhas Current of the Indian Ocean.

Unless they receive expert treatment and rehabilitation they are unlikely to survive. The Aquarium has facilities to nurse the turtles back to health and when they are strong enough they will be released back into the Indian Ocean.

Please contact the Aquarium if you find a stranded turtle or are offered one for sale.

Please read: Stranded turtles: What to do