W Free Willie The Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle
wound up on a British beach two years ago. Normally found in much warmer waters, these and other species of sea turtle occasionally get caught in a storm or North Atlantic current and find themselves in Europe where temperatures can result in a phenomenon known as “cold stun,” which can easily kill them. And indeed Willie the turtle was
barely alive when discovered on Woolabombe Bay in the Bristol Channel in January 2007. Cold-stunned and
emaciated, she was turned over to the Weymouth Sea Life Park in Dorset. When workers discovered that Willie was actually a she, they re-named her Williamena but Wee Willie stuck. Now, Wee Willie is on her way back
to more familiar waters. She has taken up residence at the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center on Topsail Island. After a film crew from the British Broadcasting Corporation tracked her progress across the Atlantic, Wee Willie became something of a media sensation. She has
ee Willie got just a wee bit turned around
also brought international exposure to the North Carolina sea turtle hospital. While the Weymouth Sea Park had some experience dealing with large loggerhead turtles that had drifted across the Atlantic, its expertise and understanding of the Kemp’s Ridley species was limited. That’s where the Karen Beasley center came in. And if everything goes according
to plan, Wee Willie will return to her natural habitat, the warm ocean currents off the Carolina coast.
–Skip Maloney CityViewNC.com | 61
