Green Sea Turtle Admitted with Severe Intestinal Blockage

Imagine, if you will, a very large, darkly colored cork bobbing around in the coastal waters along a picturesque stretch of beach in South Carolina. This is essentially what a volunteer turtle patroller from the town of Edisto Beach saw when she first spotted Eddie, a juvenile green sea turtle who was admitted into our hospital on August 26th. Visibly bloated and full of excess intestinal gas, Eddie was alert and active but unable to dive below the surface. This buoyancy issue is a huge problem for an animal designed to eat seagrasses and algae that proliferate on the sea floor.

Eddie is a testament to the resiliency of sea turtles in the wild. During his physical exam, we noticed this juvenile green had been struck by a boat earlier this year but had healed quite well without medical intervention. With the exception of the flotation disorder, Eddie was in fairly good health when he was admitted into our hospital. However, there is a strong possibility that this turtle's current buoyancy problem is a complication resulting from this boat strike.

The light-colored line on Eddie's shell (indicated by blue arrow) is healing tissue in the deepest part of the propeller strike.

In 2009, we admitted a green sea turtle named Pawley who presented with essentially the same symptoms as Eddie. X-rays of both turtles showed large loops of gas distended intestines. Although Pawley received intensive treatment - including exploratory surgery - for nearly 3 weeks, he ended up passing due to a complete obstruction of the bowel. Impactions like these are a huge concern for sea turtles worldwide as plastics and other nondigestible materials become more prominent in our oceans. Sea turtles are simply unable to differentiate between food items and trash and, if they consume garbage like bottle caps or balloons, they may end up with an impaction that leads to death.



These plastics, intermixed with jellyfish that look very similar, are floating in a mat of Sargassum. Sargassum is a seaweed that provides food and shelter to a variety of marine animals, including juvenile sea turtles. This photo was taken near Georgetown Hole in 2011 by Nigel Bowers on one of the Aquarium's collecting trips.

Luckily for Eddie, a barium study (performed in-house) and a CT scan donated by the Charleston Veterinary Referral Center have ruled out a complete bowel obstruction. However, we are still unsure what has caused the impaction, as x-rays do not show any foreign objects (certain objects, like plastics, are not visible in x-rays).


Eddie was calm and cooperative during his CT scan thanks to a small dose of a mild sedative.

 

These are two of the many views we are able to obtain with a CT scan. These scans are much more useful than x-rays as a diagnostic tool as we can view cross-sectional images of different portions of the body. Also, CT scans reveal organs, bones, and soft tissues in greater clarity than x-rays.

Our current treatment regimen is focused on increasing the motility of the gut to encourage the impaction to pass naturally and, so far, Eddie has been passing fecals quite often! We have not found any foreign bodies in Eddie's fecals yet, and he still has a large amount of excess intestinal air that is causing him to bob around like a cork in his tank, but radiographs taken yesterday indicate he is improving. This is great news, as we'd like to avoid surgery to remove the impaction if at all possible.

Eddie receives an enema to encourage his body to pass the contents of his intestinal tract.

Although we are seeing encouraging signs during this initial phase of treatment, Eddie's prognosis is still guarded and surgery may become necessary. Come visit Eddie in our hospital and wish this spunky turtle well as he tries to recover from this severe intestinal obstruction!

Eddie is looking forward to meeting you!

Christi Hughes
Sea Turtle Biologist

Gumby Gets Excited About Fill Pipe!

Start your weekend off right with a fun video starring Gumby interacting with his fill pipe and water! 

 

Sea Turtle Rescue Team

Sea Turtle Release this Thursday at Kiawah!

The South Carolina Aquarium is excited to announce the release of two sea turtles, Pier and Grover, at 3pm on Thursday, August 16th at Beachwalker County Park on Kiawah Island. County Park parking fees apply and parking will be limited so please carpool and arrive early. This release, in partnership with the SC Department of Natural Resources and the Charleston County Parks and Recreation Commission, will bring the South Carolina Aquarium to 94 sea turtles successfully rehabilitated and returned to the ocean.

Pier:  This juvenile loggerhead sea turtle suffered a massive shark bite to the carapace (shell) and remarkably, escaped otherwise unscathed. Luckily, fishermen on the Folly Beach fishing pier caught the injured turtle on hook and line and notified proper authorities so the turtle could be transported to the Sea Turtle Hospital and returned to optimal health.


Pier's first swim in the Sea Turtle Hospital.

Close up of Pier's wound during admission.

A remarkable amount of healing has taken place in only 2 months!

Grover:  Rescued in March of this year from the chilly waters of Cherry Grove, the juvenile green sea turtle was the first live local stranding of the season. The 60 degree waters caused the turtle to become hypothermic but after 5 months in rehabilitation, is incredibly strong and feisty!

Grover's behavior and physical condition improved greatly after 4 months of rehabilitation.

The colors of Grover's plastron, carapace and skin has improved dramatically!

These turtles have made a lasting impression on those that have visited them in the hospital on tours and that have worked with them. They both epitomize the resilience of sea turtles and their feisty nature reminds us why these animals have been around for millions of years. Good luck Pier and Grover!

Kelly Thorvalson
Sea Turtle Rescue Program Manager

PS - Remember to arrive extra early to get a parking place and a good viewing spot on the ropes!

Small Kemp's ridley freed from fisherman's hook

The most recent sea turtle admitted into our Sea Turtle Hospital is one of the smallest sea turtles in the history of the program! Weighing only 2.09 kg (4.6 pounds), the Kemp's ridley was caught on hook and line by a shore fisherman on Edisto Island near Murray Street. When the fisherman and others realized they could not remove the hook that was deeply embedded in the back of the mouth, they turned the turtle over to the SC Department of Natural Resources to be transported to our Sea Turtle Hospital so the hook could be safely removed.

Lisa Scarano from SCDNR holds "Murray" as Dr. Boylan inspects the mouth.

X-rays were performed to determine exactly where the hook was located.

Fishing hooks show up well on x-rays and help guide surgery for hook removal. Notice all the shell hash in Murray's intestinal tract! Thanks to SCUTE, the Gobiens and all the folks that helped us acquire this priceless machine!

With the turtle under anesthesia, hook removal surgery was performed.

Success! After the drugs wore off, Murray was placed in a filtered tank in the Sea Turtle Hospital, where s/he will spend several week recuperating.



Murray is very active and eating well. Thanks to all involved in this turtle's rescue, to all involved in the recovery, and to all who support this program. There are currently 10 sea turtle patients at various stages of rehabilitation. Visit our Sea Turtle Hospital web page for updates on the patients and to learn about Sea Turtle Hospital tour days and times so you can visit the patients in person.

All the best,
Kelly Thorvalson

Reflections from our Departing Italian Intern

Hi everybody! My name is Sara and I am one of three South Carolina Aquarium's Sea Turtle Rescue Program interns this summer. I'm from Italy and I've decided to come here because I love sea turtles and I am so lucky because my application was accepted. I'm leaving America at the end of July so I would like to share some thoughts with you.

Sara holds our wild diamondback terrapin, Stumpy, while her amputated front limb is flushed.

Seing these animals everyday makes me very happy, and to have the opportunity to work with them makes me even happier! Now there are 9 turtles in the hospital, and it's very hard to say which one I prefer because, after I have spent almost 2 months with them, I can say that every one has a peculiar characteristic, something that makes him special.

Gumby makes me laugh as he loves to bite everything!

As interns, we have many different responsibilities around the hospital. We must ensure that the hospital is as clean and tidy as possible, we feed the turtles, do treatments, etc. Something new often happens that changes all the schedules and teaches me something, and I promise you that I'm never bored!

Our veterinarian taught Sara how to draw blood on Charlie, our largest loggerhead turtle.

One of the nicest things is the coming in of a new turtle. It may happen anytime, and when I get the call I start thinking ”How big will she be? What species? I hope she's well.” Unfortunately since I've been here I’ve seen some turtles that were not very well. Some have died after they came in and when it happens it's very sad, and I feel helpless. But it's a great feeling when I get to help a new turtle, and to watch them recover.

Sara (in blue shirt) helped flush George's head wound when he was admitted last Friday.

Also, I saw a lot of happy cases! There are new turtles like Pier, Charlie, Bulls Bay, and Hook, and they are all getting better! It's very interesting to observe the healing process - the first few days are crucial, the turtles may not feel like eating, but now Bulls eats a lot and Charlie has delicious taste - he eats only crabs!

Charlie is a picky eater! He eats only blue crabs for breakfast.

In conclusion, although these animals aren't like pets, they are giving me a lot of satisfaction! The only thing that I'm not yet able to do is teaching them to speaking Italian...but I'm working on it!

Sara Gori

STRP Intern

Loggerhead Admitted with Multiple Skull Fractures

On July 20, 2012, the South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Rescue Program received its fourth admittance of the month. This 53-pound loggerhead was found floating in Jones Creek in Georgetown County suffering from multiple boat propeller strikes. Although "George" has a dislocated bone in the front left flipper and lacerations to the neck and marginal scutes, the propeller did most damage to the skull. One strike cut off most of the nares (nostrils) and top portion of the beak. The propeller also struck the left side of the skull, fracturing both the maxilla (upper jaw) and mandible (lower jaw). Since loggerheads eat hard shelled prey in the wild, these jaw fractures are of great concern.

Profile view of the damage to George's face/skull.

View of the strike that caused multiple fractures to the upper and lower jaw.

Staff biologist Christi Hughes draws blood to be analyzed; those results are vital to proper treatment.

X-ray showing fractures to both the upper and lower jaws.

X-ray showing dislocated radile and laceration to the marginal scutes.

Despite the extensive injuries George has suffered, he continues to fight. This turtle is on two antibiotics, recieves fluids and vitamins regularly, and topical antibiotics are applied to external wounds as needed. The prognosis is still guarded but we are hopeful. Huge thanks to the folks from CMERA for their aid in the rescue and to Kelly Sloan from SCDNR for transporting the turtle. Look for updates on George's status and possible surgical procedures in the near future here on our hospital page.

Whitney Daniel

Sea Turtle Biologist

Critically Ill Loggerhead, Atalaya, Hangs on to Life

The third sea turtle admitted into the Aquarium's Sea Turtle Hospital in July is Atalaya, a sub-adult loggerhead that stranded at Huntington Beach State Park. This poor turtle is extremely debilitated, suffering from severe emaciation, dehydration, and critically low blood levels including no blood glucose and a 5% hematocrit (% red blood cells...normal is 30-40%). We are tremendously grateful for the generous donation from Loggerhead Apparel of the funds to buy a new i-STAT blood machine. Getting a thorough blood analysis when the turtles first arrive is critical to successful treatment!

Triage took place in the  Aquarium's Animal Medical Facility and included fluid therapy (IV 50%dextrose and hetastarch, SQ 5% dextrose and sodium chloride), antibiotic injections (ceftazadime and danofloxacin), and vitamin injections (B-Complex, C and K). The turtle was then dry docked in the Sea Turtle Hospital with an overnight drip of Normosol fluids. Dry docking an animal in this condition is important because they could drown in water that covers their nares (nostrils).

Jeff McClary, head of SCUTE, helped to get the turtle from Huntington to Georgetown and SCDNR transported the rest of the way to find Sea Turtle Rescue staff awaiting their arrival.

The emaciated loggerhead hardly moved during the admission process. The heavy barnacle load is an indication that the turtle has been lethargic in the ocean. 

Marine leeches were removed from the corners of the mouth. Notice how sunken the eyes are...a sign of dehydration and lack of muscles and fat behind the eyes.

Dr. Boylan gives fluids IV in the dorsal sinus.

After 2.5 hours of treatment, the turtle was moved into the ICU tank in the Sea Turtle Hospital.

After 2 nights of dry dock, Atalaya is now swimming in shallow water. She isn't eating yet and we plan to tube feed a gruel with fish and vitamins to get some nutrition on board.   

Huge thanks to all involved in Atalaya's rescue! To David LaManna from NY who found the turtle and made the calls to get her rescued; Chris Bowers, beach ranger from Huntington for responding to the stranding; Jeff McClary, fearless leader of SCUTE for transporting Atalaya from Huntington to the Sewee Outpost in Awendaw and who is always willing to drive sick and injured sea turtles to get help; Bill Brabson for volunteering to ride with Jeff for assistance; and Amy Gutierrez from SCDNR for transporting the remainder of the trip. With patients in critical condition, it takes a great deal of support to get them here as soon as possible for treatment. Also, a huge thanks to our dedicated staff and volunteers that come in on a moment's notice on evenings, weekends and holidays to help save these turtles. Atalaya's prognosis is still guarded but we are thrilled that she is still with us today!

Kelly Thorvalson

Sea Turtle Rescue Program Manager