FORT MORGAN, Ala. (FOX 13) - An endangered sea turtle was found dead on an Alabama beach, with a beach chair's string tangled around its neck.
The adult female Kemp's Ridley sea turtle was located during a Saturday morning turtle patrol, overseen by a volunteer conservation group, Share the Beach, which works with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services.
The Fort Morgan conservation group posted a photo on its Facebook page showing the critically endangered sea turtle washed ashore and turned upside down at the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge is located about an hour away from Pensacola, Florida. The images, captured by Matt Ware, showed the turtle tangled with a University of Alabama beach chair.
Share the Beach spokeswoman Debbie Harbin told WKRG that barnacles were found on the chair meaning it had been in the water for a while. She urges beachgoers to clean up their belongings and trash.
Ware said there was a silver lining on Monday morning.
"We had the full circle of life over the last few days. We just had a Kemp's nest hatch this morning!" he told FOX 13.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the sea turtle has been on the endangered species list since 1970. The Kemp's Ridley sea turtle is the rarest and smallest of the sea turtles in the world. They are usually found in the Gulf of Mexico.
Last week, the Clearwater Marine Aquarium announced they rescued a Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, they named "Donkey Kong." He was found with a fishing line entangled around his flipper.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.