Kale came to the Cook Museum from the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center, a facility that rescues and rehabilitates sea turtles and other marine animals.
Published: July 11, 2020
The Cook Museum of Natural Science, located in Decatur, Alabama, is now home to a Kemp’s ridley sea turtle which is the most endangered sea turtle species in the world. The turtle, whose name is Kale, came to the Cook Museum in June of 2020 and is housed in the Museum’s 15,000-gallon saltwater aquarium located inside the Oceans Exhibit.
Kale came to the Cook Museum from the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center, a facility that rescues and rehabilitates sea turtles and other marine animals so they can be released back into the wild. Kale, while still a juvenile, was hooked by a recreational fisherman off a pier on Chesapeake Bay in Virginia in 2019. Due to his injuries, it was determined that Kale would require medical attention from time to time, making him a non-releasable sea turtle. Cook Museum staff and veterinarians now monitor his condition and give him the care he needs to have a chance at a long and happy life. The Kemp’s ridley sea turtle is currently listed as “Critically Endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and has been on the U.S.’s endangered species list since the 1970s.
Museum visitors are now able to see Kale in the Oceans Exhibit since the Museum reopened July 8, 2020. The Museum had been closed since March 15. As of July 8, the hours of operation for all areas of the Museum will be Monday through Friday 9 a.m to 5 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m,. and Sunday Noon to 5 p.m.