The Brief

Gliding through just a few feet of murky water, a green sea turtle dodges beer cans, plastic bags and shopping carts in the concrete-lined San Gabriel River.

A scene that feels very turtle out of water.

A green sea turtle pops its head out of the water while swimming up the channelized San Gabriel River in Long Beach.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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Here's this animal that we most often see in photos of people snorkeling during a tropical vacation. It's munching on algae in fetid suburban runoff, with cars zipping by on the 605 Freeway a few hundred yards away.

Seeing any nature thrive here is a remarkable sight in and of itself. But the turtle's presence is even more awe-inspiring when you think about the epic journey it likely went through to get here.

Beating the odds

Odds are, the turtle barely made it off some beach 1,000-plus miles away, then managed to navigate the ocean for years, avoiding predation, fishermen who might accidentally catch it and speeding boats that might strike it — all to end up next to mattresses in a river just south of L.A.

Green sea turtles have made their way up the San Gabriel River, swimming under the 405 Freeway in Long Beach.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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A green sea turtle swims in the San Gabriel River near the 405 freeway.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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Once on the path to extinction, these East Pacific green sea turtles are making such a strong comeback that they’re now taking up residence in the San Gabriel River in large numbers, far beyond their typical spots in places like Baja, California and the southern San Diego Bay.

“I think it's only recently that we've really realized that green sea turtles are coming this far up the river,” said Tina Fahy, West Coast Sea Turtle Recovery Coordinator with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

She, along with Justin Greenman, who leads efforts to save stranded animals, took me to a spot in the river where the vegetation ends and the vast expanse of the San Gabriel’s bare concrete begins. We had to make sure that we got there during high tide, because the turtles use the rising water to make it farther up the river channel.

Tina Fahy, NOAA's West Coast Sea Turtle Recovery Coordinator, looks out at the San Gabriel River in Long Beach, which has one of the largest gatherings of green sea turtles in Southern California.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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Tina Fahy, NOAA's West Coast Sea Turtle Recovery Coordinator, wears a turtle earring.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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“We didn't really know until we started having some stranded high and dry turtles ... and people thought that they were in trouble,” Fahy said. “They can survive without being in water constantly.”

While these turtles have long been documented hanging out in the warm effluent of power plants downstream, swimming through the Los Cerritos wetlands and at nearby Seal Beach, their presence farther upstream is one of the signs they're on the move as their populations boom and waters continue to warm.

“Whereas 20 years ago, we had very few numbers of turtles in our local waters, now we're seeing turtles in nooks and crannies, in areas that we've never seen them before,” said Jeffrey Seminoff, who leads the Marine Turtle Ecology and Assessment Program at NOAA’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center.

"It's really only been in about the last decade that we've seen such a large number of animals," he said. "I believe the San Gabriel River is the most dense green turtle population that we have here in Southern California." 

A harrowing journey to and from L.A.

Green sea turtles can be found all around the world, but there are distinct populations. Ours are known as Eastern Pacific green sea turtles.

Nesting season begins in October, but the turtles don’t lay their eggs here in L.A. They leave the confines of the San Gabriel, head out into the open ocean and slowly swim more than 1,000 miles south to warm beaches like Playa Colola in Michoacán, Mexico.

The turtles mate offshore and the females head in to the beach to bury their eggs in the sand.

Emaciated and exhausted, they then turn around and limp back up to their homes all across Baja and Southern California. The journey is so harrowing that it can take a few years for a female to recover before she’s ready to lay eggs again.

After about 55 days, their babies emerge and steadily get picked off by predators like birds, crabs and raccoons along the beaches. The survivors make their way into the open ocean where they’ll spend the next four years or so passively floating. With yet more predators prowling the seas, the best estimate is that only about 1% of them make it to adulthood.

Around age 6, the turtles swim inland and settle in coastal habitats like the San Gabriel River for the next 15 years. There, they can forage and grow until they're full-fledged adults ready to follow the Earth’s magnetic field back down south to mate and lay eggs, like their parents before them.

The best estimates say that they can live longer than 80 years and grow to over 400 pounds.

The ones observed in the San Gabriel River seem to be adolescents.

We almost lost the turtles

About 50 years ago, green sea turtle populations, including those in the Eastern Pacific, absolutely cratered.

Habitat loss, ship strikes and being accidentally caught by fishermen all jeopardized their survival, as did the fact that they were being hunted for their meat and eggs in Mexico.

They were put on the U.S. federal endangered species list in the 1970s. And by the 1990s, Mexico had taken steps to both protect nesting sites and foraging populations, and ban the sale and use of turtle products.

Since then, the turtles have been steadily recovering.

Back in the 1980s, roughly 250 turtles were spotted on Playa Colola in Michoacán over the six-month-long nesting season. In 2015, more than 1,000 were spotted in one night, Seminoff said.

In April 2016, their status was changed from endangered to threatened, and over the past five years their populations here have exploded.

Tina Fahy, NOAA's West Coast Sea Turtle Recovery Coordinator, looks out at the San Gabriel River in Long Beach, which has one of the largest gatherings of green sea turtles in Southern California.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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Now, they're showing up in surprising numbers, farther up the San Gabriel River than was previously observed.

“Part of why I think we're seeing turtles in these different habitats where we've never seen them before, is simply a function of crowding,” said Seminoff. “There are sites like the San Gabriel River, for example, where we might be at what we call ‘capacity.’ There's just so many turtles that there's a limitation of food. And if that's happening more and more in different spots throughout Southern California, that's going to force turtles to find new spots that have abundant food supplies so that they can set up shop and live there for years at a time.”

Why do the turtles like the San Gabriel River?

When it comes to comfort, turtles are looking for warm water, food and safety, and the San Gabriel River seems to meet those requirements.

Green sea turtles have made their way up the San Gabriel River swimming under the 405 Freeway in Long Beach.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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Ducks on the San Gabriel River co-exist with green sea turtles that gather in the area.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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All the bridge pilings may be a great place for them to rest, as they can protect the turtles from getting jostled around by the tides.

There are plenty of rock piles for algae to grow and mud for invertebrates to flourish in, both of which are critical sources of food.

Boat strikes and getting accidentally caught aren't a concern because the river is protected.

Justin Greenman, the California Assistant Stranding Coordinator at NOAA.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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On top of all that, its waters are being warmed by the effluent from power plants downstream. Moving upstream, giant concrete walls absorb the sun’s energy during the day and radiate it out at night, likely keeping resulting in temperatures a bit more habitable for reptiles that prefer tropical and subtropical locations.

Speaking of which, as waters warm due to climate change, habitats farther to the north will likely open up as well.

“I expect that we'll see turtles move farther and farther north along the coast of California," Seminoff said. "We're seeing green turtles in places like Monterey Bay with greater frequency these days. It's not normal by any sense of the word."

The concrete walls of the San Gabriel River absorb the sun's heat likely resulting in warmer temperatures.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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Rock piles in the San Gabriel River allow algae to grow for the green sea turtles to eat.

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Samanta Helou Hernandez

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LAist

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In July, the National Marine Fisheries Service and NOAA proposed designating turtle hotspots across Southern California, marine-critical habitats, which would afford the turtles additional protections. Essentially, the designation is meant to mitigate impacts on the turtles from activities like construction, and requires federal agencies consult with NOAA during the process.

It's truly a period of discovery, and there are a ton of questions that NOAA and others want to answer about turtle habits and movement, particularly in the San Gabriel River.

That’s where you come in.

Scientists need your help studying them

For the past decade or so, scientists have been actively gathering information about turtles in the lower part of the river, but are looking to expand their studies farther upstream given the population boom.

If you’d like to volunteer to help, The Aquarium of the Pacific has been running a turtle spotting program since 2012. Participants get together every first Saturday of the month and spend about 30 minutes out in the field counting turtles. The data they gather is made available to NOAA and the Los Cerritos Wetlands authority, in an effort to track turtle activity.

If you want to go out on your own and provide information about turtles directly to NOAA, you can head to the spot on the map above, and submit whatever you gather here.

Make sure to include a picture of the turtle if possible, as each has a unique set of markings on its head, which can help scientists better track turtle movement over time.

Oh, and if you see a turtle stranded, call NOAA's California stranding network hotline at (562) 506-4315.

Alysa Liu’s comeback at this year’s Olympics — and her stunning gold medal win — has rocked the world of figure skating, making headlines due to her joy while performing and her commitment to mental health on and off the ice.

Though she primarily trained in Oakland, Liu, who’s also a psychology student at the UCLA, has used a facility in Lakewood as one of her home bases away from home. The 20-year-old started training there as she came back from retirement and prepared to take the gold medal (not that that was necessarily her goal, to hear her tell it).

It’s part of a long history for the Rinks-Lakewood ICE, which has also hosted many champions and Olympians over the years, including Mariah Bell, Nathan Chen, Ashley Wagner and Adam Rippon, and counts prominent figure skaters among their staff.

“ We're not unfamiliar with Olympic ties,” Overett said, though he also clarified, “that does not in any way diminish the fun and the coolness [of Liu’s win].”

Lakewood ICE’s place in this year’s Olympics

Working with her coaches remotely, Liu started to drill down on perfecting her skating while also attending classes at UCLA. And though she moved on to her home base at Oakland Ice Center as the Olympic training started to ramp up, the staff who worked with her at Lakewood ICE kept cheering her on.

Braden Overett, the skating manager at Lakewood ICE, said that he loves highlighting the Olympic connections at the rink, which may not be obvious to everyone who skates there.

“It's always fun just to connect the dots, right?” Overett said. “It's like going to a restaurant and then you find out later it's your favorite actor's restaurant.”

Ashleigh Ellis runs the nonprofit Unity Ice Academy, which focuses on increasing access to figure skating for kids of all backgrounds at Lakewood ICE.

“ That's just very much how the skating world is. It's very small, you never know who you're going to run into at any time,” Ellis said. “ Could you imagine just being on the ice with a national champion and Olympic skater of any sort? It's just so inspiring for the kids to see that and be within the vicinity of that.”

And Liu wasn’t the only 2026 Olympic figure skater who's used the facility. Li Yu-Hsiang, the Taiwanese national champion who represented Chinese Taipei in Milan this year, also trains in Lakewood.

The rink’s coaches

The small world of skating means that even novice skaters can take classes from world-class skaters: 1976 Olympic silver medalist Dianne de Leeuw teaches there, as do national medalists (and future Olympic contenders) Starr Andrews and Josephine Lee.

 ”To get to see them and to get to share ice with them just has a layer of magic that you can't replace and you can't get anywhere else,” Overett said. “ You see the turnover of generations, and it brings in a huge element of history.”

What Liu’s win means for the skating world

Ellis is already using Liu’s example to stress the importance of mental health to the kids and families she works with, like one parent who was worrying about her child taking two weeks off skating due to pneumonia.

“I was like, ‘Alysa Liu took two plus years off and she just won the Olympic gold. Do not worry about it this two weeks,’” she said.

A bipartisan bill aimed at protecting pets during disasters has been introduced in Congress, with a Southern California representative citing the rescue efforts of local organizations during last year’s L.A.-area fires.

The PETSAFE Act of 2026 — which stands for Providing Essential Temporary Shelter Assistance For Emergencies — would expand the use of emergency management funds so local governments can plan for evacuations that move animals to safety, as well as provide veterinary care and rescue equipment during disasters.

Rep. Judy Chu (D-CA) helped introduce the bill earlier this month with several House of Representatives colleagues, including Republican Rep. Brian Mast of Florida and Democrat Rep. Dina Titus of Nevada.

Chu, who represents Pasadena and Altadena in the 28th Congressional District, said when the Eaton Fire tore through her district, many families delayed evacuations because they couldn’t bear to leave their pets behind.

She told LAist she’ll never forget seeing the cats, dogs and other animals with burned feet and singed fur who were being cared for by Pasadena Humane in the aftermath.

“But to think, if there is even one more thing we could do to keep our precious pets safe, wouldn't we want to do that?” Chu said. “So this PETSAFE Act could go a long way towards making sure that our loved pets can indeed survive a disaster.”

About the bill

Pasadena Humane teams looked for pets and wildlife in Eaton burn zones, dropping off food and water along the way.

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Courtesy Pasadena Humane

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The PETSAFE Act now has been referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The bill would amend the Emergency Management Performance Grant program to increase the federal cost share for certain animal-related preparedness activities from 50% to 90%.

Supporters say this would lower barriers and make it more affordable for communities to roll out emergency protection plans for people and pets.

Specifically, the PETSAFE Act would allow state, local and tribal governments to use grant money awarded by FEMA toward pet supplies, crates, veterinary equipment, emergency generators and training, among others.

Pet owners whose homes are under disaster-related evacuation orders can be faced with an “impossible choice” — leaving their pets behind or staying home with them, which risks the owner’s own safety and complicates rescue efforts for first responders, according to Chu’s office.

The bill aims to address the challenges pet owners and first responders face without authorizing new federal spending, according to Mast’s office.

How we got here 

Chu said local shelters, including Pasadena Humane, and communities across California stepped up to care for all kinds of animals during the Eaton Fire, which ignited in January 2025.

Pasadena Humane helped more than 1,500 pets and wildlife during the fire and in the aftermath by providing shelter, medical care and emergency resources.

A horse was housed in the organization’s garage when Chris Ramon, Pasadena Humane’s president and CEO, ran into its owner walking down Raymond Avenue for miles.

“Part of me likes to think that this won’t happen again,” Ramon told LAist last month. “But the realist in me realizes … disaster preparedness is something that just is an ongoing conversation for us at Pasadena Humane.”

Chu also cited the work of the ASPCA, which helped more than 530 animals during the Eaton Fire, including goats, parakeets, pigs and a gecko, according to the organization.

She said local organizations did “tremendous” work and “lovingly cared for” the rush of animals affected by the fire.

“But what we would want to do is to make sure that there is an even better system for animal evacuation and ways to ensure that pets could be safe,” Chu said, adding that would relieve the burden on places like Pasadena Humane.

Other laws aiming to protect pets

This is not the first time last year’s fires have led to new legislation focused on protecting pets during emergencies.

A new state law known as the FOUND Act, which went into effect Jan. 1, was inspired by Oreo the Pomeranian, who reunited with its Pacific Palisades owner in an emotional, viral video during the Palisades Fire.

The law requires cities and counties to include procedures for rescuing pets during mandatory evacuations in their next emergency plans, which need to be updated every five years to qualify for FEMA assistance.