provided to The Santiva Chronicle
With a March 25 SanCap Chamber ribbon-cutting, CROW (Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife) on Sanibel Island celebrated its first step in a journey to once again rehabilitate sea turtles with Harkey Sea Turtle Complex, which replaces a facility at 3883 Sanibel Captiva Road demolished by Hurricane Ian in 2022.
“When I speak of the ‘blessings of Ian,’ one of the highlights is the new Harkey Sea Turtle Complex,” said Alison Charney Hussey, CROW executive director. “Our previous facility was fairly unsophisticated. The pole barn housed fiberglass pools with basic filtration equipment.”
With funding provided by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and donors, the new state-of-the-art facility has larger tanks, heaters and chillers, ionization filters, and other features to elevate the care of turtle patients.
The nearly $3 million facility will also include cameras to allow the CROW team to evaluate and the public to witness firsthand the sea turtles’ recovery process.
“Congratulations to CROW! This is really a community victory,” said John Lai, president and chief executive officer of the SanCap Chamber. “Our sea turtles are so important and well-loved here on the islands, we all feel the joy at seeing improved rehab care for injured hatchlings to adults.”
“Our community cares so much about our sea turtles, and it was so evident when we embarked on this rebuilding effort,” said Hussey. “Time, talent, and treasure were showered upon CROW and the Harkey Sea Turtle Complex from all involved. The experts, the construction team, the veterinary and rehabilitation staff, the city, and our community partners – everyone has fully supported rebuilding this pillar of CROW care.”
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