Amputee sea turtle being tracked at sea from space
CBSN
Juno Beach, Fla. — The veterinary staff at a Florida sea turtle hospital is getting help from space to monitor the animals they've rehabilitated. They're particularly interested in amputees. In:
Juno Beach, Fla. — The veterinary staff at a Florida sea turtle hospital is getting help from space to monitor the animals they've rehabilitated. They're particularly interested in amputees.
Using satellite tracking devices in a collaboration between the Loggerhead Marinelife Center and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, scientists are learning how well sea turtles can survive in the wild after losing a limb.
Amelie, a Kemp's ridley sea turtle who lost her right forelimb to a predator - most likely a shark, the center said - was taken to the beach on Wednesday for her highly anticipated release. The turtle paused for about 30 seconds, then slowly made her way into the Atlantic Ocean as onlookers cheered.
Amelie had been rescued and brought to the center by the Inwater Research Group in Port St. Lucie, Florida, seven weeks earlier after a traumatic amputation. She underwent surgery to clean and close the wound, and was treated for pneumonia while in a tank at the center. When veterinarians deemed her healthy enough to return to the sea, they glued a tracking device to her shell.
An ultrasound confirmed that Amelie is developing eggs, giving researchers another reason to track her movements.
