He was coated with barnacles, but they were plucked off one by one. This week, fisherman off the coast of Tasmania discovered something unusual: a huge loggerhead sea turtle in serious need of assistance.
He was a huge guy, around 220 pounds, yet he was sluggish. He couldn’t even submerge himself in water and was coated with barnacles, indicating he’d been unwell for some time.
“Marine turtles are infrequently sighted in Tasmanian seas, and this one was plainly in terrible health,” noted the Marine Conservation Program (MCP), a government organization that rushed to the turtle’s rescue when fishermen seized him and transported him to seek assistance.
According to MCP, the turtle was temporarily housed at a fish market overnight before being sent for a veterinary examination the next day.
X-rays were performed on him to see whether he had consumed any fishing gear or plastic. According to MCP, loggerhead turtles frequently consume plastic bags after mistaking them for jellyfish.
Fortunately, this particular turtle avoided these perils.
Rescuers gave him some fortifying fluids and removed the barnacles one by one. MCP will decide what’s next for him after he appears to be getting better.
