News Release

Padre Island National Seashore Announces Suspension of Public Turtle Release Events for Summer 2020

Date: May 20, 2020
Contact: Charles Lassiter

The National Park Service, in response to ongoing health guidance is announcing additional modifications to operations to support federal, state, and local efforts to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

Padre Island National Seashore will not hold public sea turtle release events this summer. These public release events have become increasingly popular and regularly draw crowds between 700 and 1200 participants. This demonstrates both the success of, and the incredible public support for, the Kemps ridley sea turtles, the most endangered of all sea turtle species.

Due to the overwhelming popularity of these public events, it is not possible to host them this summer while adhering to social distancing and crowd avoidance guidelines. When conditions and guidance allow, the park will resume these popular turtle release events, as well as, traditional ranger guided activities. This summer the park will film hatchling releases and post them on the turtle Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/nps.pais.seaturtles.

The health and safety of our visitors, employees, volunteers, and partners at Padre Island National Seashore is our number one priority. The National Park Service (NPS) is working servicewide with federal, state, and local authorities to closely monitor the COVID-19 pandemic. We will notify the public when we resume full operations and provide updates on our website, https://nps.gov/pais and Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/nps.pais. .

If contemplating a visit to a national park during this pandemic, the NPS asks visitors to adhere to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state and local public health authorities to protect visitors and employees. As services are limited, the NPS urges visitors to continue to practice Leave No Trace principles, including pack-in and pack-out, to keep outdoor spaces safer and healthier.