The Texas Coast is on high alert as researchers have requested that residents keep a close eye out for mysterious, incredibly exciting orange-painted blocks that are apparently related to research on turtles.
Yes, you heard that right. Turtles. The yellow-bellied sliders and red-eared sliders who somehow managed to snag themselves the attention of marine biologists and wildlife researchers on the Texas coast. How remarkable.
According to the research team at the Padre Island National Seashore, these orange blocks are part of an important mission to obtain information about the environment in which these turtles are living.
This groundbreaking research involves carefully painting blocks featuring a vibrant shade of orange and leaving them in the sand around nests to see what the turtles do. Excitement levels in Texas must be skyrocketing from this announcement.
Apparently, female turtles can get a bit confused after laying eggs for what could potentially be the one millionth time and needs some extra help finding their way back to the water. And what better way to help them out than with some orange blocks?
The blocks, according to the researchers, serve as something of a guiding light to these bewildered turtles, leading them back to the water. These clever little things are bedecked with magnets, which help the scientists track their movements, making for very important data, indeed.
But, the real question here is, who cares about turtles? They’re slow, they’re boring, and they don’t even make a good sandwich. What’s the point in our tax dollars going towards saving them? What’s next, painting our cats neon-green to track their Amazon deliveries?
While it’s incredible to see the kind of innovation these wildlife researchers are putting out there, one has to wonder if the turtles even want or need our help in the first place. This is, after all, the circle of life.
Perhaps it’s the thrill of the hunt that keeps these researchers out on the blistering hot Texas coast, painting blocks and following turtles. Who knows what kind of ground-breaking discoveries are going to be made from this crucial research?
Admittedly, we might be a little too snarky about this whole thing. The fact of the matter is, humans and animals have been coexisting forever, and if these turtles need a little extra help in finding the sea, then so be it.
So, if you’re in the Texas coast area and see some orange blocks lying around, don’t fret. It’s just some overpaid scientists doing their thing, and turtles trying to live their lives, or whatever it is turtles do.
