Meet Ella, our new juvenile green sea turtle patient that is recovering from fishing line entanglement! She was found Saturday night on the Texas City Dike where a family was able to call us and safely pull her to shore.
She needed help as a hook was still embedded in her flipper and the line was cutting off circulation. Thank you to the family for calling our hotline
(866) TURTLE-5
and thank you to our Houston Zoo partners for helping us care for this animal.
Remember to call the hotline if you see a sea turtle in distress!
#gcstr #everybodyrow #saveseaturtles
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
The Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research will financially rely upon sources of support through sponsored research, extramural grants, gifts, and donations.
You can help support Gulf sea turtles and the Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research by
1) Donating directly to the Center Online:
Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research (Currently we are in need of immediate use funds, so for now we are asking that online giving funds go into the endowment income side of the fund as opposed to going into building the endowment side of the fund.)
To donate online go to https://give.am/TurtleResearchNOW
Make the checks payable to "Texas A&M Foundation" and include them on the memo "05-58620 Turtle Research" then mail it to the following address::
Texas A&M University at GalvestonAttn: Development - Alice MaffayP. O. Box 1675Galveston, TX 77553-1675
2) Donate directly to the sea turtle hospital capital campaign fund:
Upper Texas Coast Sea Turtle Hospital and Educational Outreach Center
To donate online go to https://give.am/SeaTurtleFacility
Make the checks payable to "Texas A&M Foundation" and include them on the memo "05-74093 Turtle Facility" then mail it to the following address:
Texas A&M University at GalvestonAttn: Development - Alice MaffayP. O. Box 1675Galveston, TX 77553-1675
3) Purchasing the Texas Sea Turtle Specialty license plate. The Texas Department of Motor Vehicles is offering a Texas Sea Turtle Specialty License plate that will generate revenue to support the new Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research and its activities.
There are 3 ways to purchase the new sea turtle specialty plate:
A. Apply online at https://www.myplates.com/design/background/passenger/sea-turtle
B. Apply in person at their county tax office with application form VTR-999 (if plates are applied for in person at the county tax office and the county registers the new plates to the vehicle, the plates will be mailed directly to the customer address on file) https://www.txdmv.gov/forms
C. Mail the form VTR-999 to their local county tax office (submitting the form by mail, the county may not register the plates to the vehicle. The plates will be shipped to the customer's main county tax office 3 to 4 weeks from processing) https://www.txdmv.gov/forms
The cost of the Texas Sea Turtle Specialty license plate is $30, and the Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research will receive $22 of the $30 fee collected for every set of plates sold and renewed annually. The fee is $70 for a personalized plate in addition to the customers' registration fees. Additional fees may be collected to establish a single expiration date for both the specialty plates and the vehicle registration.
As specialty license plate sales increase, it is the intent of the Gulf Center for Sea Turtle Research to use the revenue to establish a Texas Sea Turtle Grants Program, with the goal to foster sea turtle research within the State of Texas by supporting graduate student projects as well as directly.