KNYSNA NEWS - A flight from Plettenberg Bay to Cape Town last week had a very unlikely passenger – an endangered turtle that was saved from the brink of death.
The marketing manager at Tenikwa rehabilitation centre in Plett, Amelia Havemann, said that on 5 October, vigilant members of the Sedgefield Animal Matters group discovered a juvenile green sea turtle washed up on the beach in Sedgefield.
“The turtle was on its back and they at first believed it was dead. When the flipped the turtle over, they realised it wasn’t and brought it to Tenikwa,” Havemann said.
The turtle was dehydrated and suffered from a large wound to one of its flippers.
It is not know what caused the injury, but Havemann said it could well be the result of a bite from another marine creature.
“We were however able to stabilise the turtle and managed to rehydrated it. We managed to nurse him back to such a condition where a flight to the Two Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town, for further care, would be possible.”
CemAir agreed to sponsor the flight to Cape Town and on 10 October the young marine creature boarded the flight.
The Two Oceans Aquarium experts have since confirmed that the turtle arrived safely and was, in fact, between the age of eight and 12 years old.
“The amazing team at the Two Oceans Aquarium has cleaned the turtle up and did a proper X-Ray of the injured flipper, which revealed there are no breaks.
This is very positive as a broken flipper could lead to amputation.”
They also ascertained that there were also no blockages in the turtle’s intestinal system.
“The aim is to rehabilitate the turtle and then eventually release him back into the ocean.”
Classified as endangered, green turtles are threatened by overharvesting of their eggs, hunting of adults, being caught in fishing gear and loss of nesting beach sites.
“Thus this success story is of vital importance for our team and the conservation of these amazing creatures.”
What to do when you find a turtle
Havemann said there are a few steps to take.
- Place the turtle in a dry container and don't throw it back into the sea as in many cases the animal would be too weak to survive.
- Keep the turtle at room temperature to warm it up slowly.
- Check if the turtle is still alive as often they would appear dead, like with the most recent incident.
- Don't give the turtle any food or water and find help as soon as possible.
- Contact Tenikwa (044 534 8170 / 082 486 1515) or the nearest CapeNature, SANParks or animal rehabilitation centre for assistance.
Read a previous article: Rare turtle flown to Cape Town
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