What Happens to Sea Turtles When a Major Storm Moves Through?
Tracking data offer a look at how loggerhead sea turtles respond to changing conditions at sea.
October 14, 2026
Recent weather gave us an interesting opportunity to watch CFF’s live turtle tracking data as tagged turtles moved through the Northwest Atlantic. It also brought to mind earlier research involving CFF that asked a similar question: what happens to sea turtles when a major storm moves through?
Published in Movement Ecology in 2020, “Riders on the storm: loggerhead sea turtles detect and respond to a major hurricane in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean” followed 18 satellite-tagged loggerhead sea turtles as Hurricane Irene passed through the Mid-Atlantic Bight in 2011.
Researchers observed changes in turtle movement and diving during and after the storm. Most turtles moved north during the hurricane. After Irene passed, eight left their established foraging areas, with seven moving south by as much as 135 km. Turtles that remained also showed changes in their dive behavior.
The tags captured more than the turtles’ movements. They also recorded changes in ocean conditions, including a drop in sea surface temperature and changes in the water column as the storm passed.
The study did not determine exactly what prompted the turtles’ behavioral changes, but the findings showed how extreme weather can coincide with changes in loggerhead movement and diving, and how turtle-borne tags can provide another view of changing ocean conditions.
Now, our latest tracking data offer another chance to watch these animals on the move as weather passes through the region.