Aelin, a young green sea turtle, was released into the ocean after five months of intensive care at Florida’s Loggerhead Marinelife Center for severe shell damage from a boat strike. An area of missing bone in her shell is covered by firm tissue.
The center’s veterinary team used dry docking, vacuum-assisted wound treatment, surgery to remove injured bone and tissue, regular wound care and continued monitoring. It said the shell area is expected to keep hardening as scar tissue fills it, but will not become as hard as it once was.
Loggerhead Marinelife Center urged boaters to slow down, wear polarized sunglasses, use a wildlife spotter and watch for turtles surfacing to breathe. The center also noted that Palm Beach County’s Sea Turtle Protection Zone asks boaters to travel slowly from shore to one mile offshore during nesting season.
