How we treated other animals isn’t just a sign of our character, it’s a sign of our health.
Scientists at Mote Marine Laboratory’s Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Hospital said a rehabbed green sea turtle named “Henry” was released at 10 a.m. Thursday, and is now swimming “happy and freely” in the Gulf of Mexico near Anna Maria City Pier.
“They (sea turtles) reflect what’s going on in our environment out in the ocean,” said Lynne Byrd, Mote’s Rehabilitation and Medical Care Coordinator. “We look at their health and their population growth to see how well we are doing as a human race. When these animals come in sick and endangered and not thriving we have to look at what we are doing to the environment a well.”
Henry was found in January on the beach covered in seaweed, with a low body temperature, and damage to his top shell caused by a boat. He was brought in to Mote where a veterinarian examined him and discovered he was also suffering from fibropapillomatosis tumors which could have caused him to go blind and have trouble moving his flippers.
Untreated, the young sea turtle would have suffered a “miserable death,” Byrd said.
Lynne Byrd, Mote Rehabilitation and Medical Care Coordinator. (STAFF PHOTO / CARLOS R. MUNOZ)
Nearly five months later, Henry, named for Wells Fargo founder Henry Wells whose company donated $7,500 to Mote’s sea turtle rehab, outlook is good.
“We are very hopeful that he will (survive),” she said. “He passed all the bells and whistles that we threw at him. He can catch and forage wild prey and no longer floats on the surface. He seemed to adapt to our environment and has not had any more outbreaks of that virus.
“We are very hopeful he’ll live a long life out in the wild.”
Mote’s Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Hospital has admitted more than 560 sick and injured sea turtles since 1995, including all five species found in the Gulf of Mexico.
Green sea turtles remain on the threatened or endangered species list and along with loggerheads commonly nest on Sarasota County’s shoreline.
Please report distressed or dead sea turtles:
Mote‘s Sea Turtle Conservation and Research Program monitors sea turtle nesting from Longboat Key through Venice, and Mote‘s Stranding Investigations Program responds to reports of sick, injured or dead marine mammals and sea turtles in Sarasota and Manatee counties.
- To report issues with sea turtle nests, nesting turtles or hatchlings (babies) from Longboat Key through Venice (such as disoriented hatchlings or storm-damaged nests), please call Mote‘s Sea Turtle Conservation and Research Program at 941-388-4331.
- Within Sarasota or Manatee county waters, if you see a stranded or dead sea turtle, dolphin or whale, please call Mote‘s Stranding Investigations Program, a 24-hour response service, at (941) 988-0212.
- If you see a stranded or dead manatee anywhere in state waters or a stranded or dead sea turtle, dolphin or whale outside of Sarasota and Manatee counties, please call the FWC Wildlife Alert hotline at 1 (888) 404-FWCC (3922).