Injured sea turtle rescued, rehabilitating at Phuket Marine Centre

There’s been another sea turtle rescue in Thailand. An injured olive ridley sea turtle was recently found at Thai Mueang Beach in Phang Nga province and is now receiving care at the Phuket Marine Biological Centre (PMBC). The young turtle had lost one of its flippers, likely due to entanglement in fishing nets, according to wildlife experts, The Phuket News reported.

Officials from the Sirithan Rare Marine Life Rescue Center, situated at the PMBC on Phuket’s Cape Panwa, were informed of the turtle’s plight by their colleagues from the Khao Lampi – Hat Thai Mueang National Park. Both the park and the rescue center operate under the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR).

The DMCR revealed that the rescued turtle is youngl, measuring slightly over 50 centimetres in diameter and weighing approximately 15.4 kilograms. The gender of the turtle has not yet been identified.

The turtle is missing its right front flipper, with a bone protruding from inflamed flesh. Wildlife officials suspect that it sustained the injury from getting entangled in discarded fishing nets.

The DMCR added that the turtle is suffering from severe lung inflammation. Therefore, veterinarians are currently providing appropriate treatment and rehabilitation at the Sirithan Rare Marine Life Rescue Center, as reported on Facebook by the DMCR.

Sea turtles often get injured by discarded fishing nets in Thailand. Last year, another olive ridley sea turtle injured its flipper from a discarded fishing net. The DCMR worked to nurse the turtle back to health, and expected it to make a full recovery.

Only one in 1,000 sea turtle hatchlings is thought to make it to adulthood. Without guidance, many hatchlings die from dehydration because they don’t make it to the ocean fast enough. In Thailand, park rangers play a crucial role in protecting sea turtle eggs and hatchlings. Rangers often move eggs they find to safer spots and help to safely guide hatchlings into the sea.