We go for whales and come back with a turtle

Turtles are dominating my week. After taking a mortally wounded turtle to the Centro de Recuperación de Fauna Silvestre (Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre for Wildlife) in La Laguna a couple of days ago and miserably watching it being euthanised, I became involved in the rescue of another Loggerhead turtle.

I had gone to sea with Antonella and Maria from SECAC  (see also: www.museodecetaceos.org) and Angél, a volunteer. Every month Antonella and one of her colleagues spend 10 days at sea in a particular area surveying cetaceans. Today they were out to count Short finned pilot whales, photograph them for identification, and observe their behaviour. I was lucky and happy to be able to go out with them again. The sea was choppy and it was hard to make any sightings. Nevertheless, we saw an above average number of Pilot whales in various groupings. The pods were widely dispersed over a large area and I found it difficult to work out which individuals formed a group. Antonella and Maria discussed the group membership, genders and age ranges, and I was glad that I was with experts as it was only when individuals came together that I could see that they belonged together.

Pilot whales have strong social bonds, and it is said that this is one of the reasons that they don’t strand individually. Sadly, when one strands, many of the pod members will follow. Pilot whales are often sociable to boats too. Like many young animals, the calves are curious and one young animal swam next to our rib for a while, checking it and us out. After being called away it then ‘spy hopped’, sticking its head out of the water, at a distance, to continue looking at us.

A turtle in trouble

We had gone to sea to survey Pilot whales, and we came back with a sick turtle. In the mid-afternoon heat, when even the Pilot whales seemed to be resting, we saw a movement in the distance. It turned out to be a Loggerhead turtle having buoyancy problems. It could not float horizontally as is normal. One side was sticking up in the air while the other was below the surface. The turtle was flapping its flippers in vain to try to right itself. Antonella jumped into the water and pushed the turtle towards the rib where Maria and I together hauled it aboard, avoiding its powerful beak.

Loggerhead turtles are an endangered species and at every possible opportunity conservation organisations such as SECAC collect data on them. With great efficiency to cause a minimum of stress to the turtle, Antonella and Maria took the relevant data, recording its location and behaviour, measuring the carapace, the flippers, fins and checking it for wounds, parasites and any external abnormalities. They then put the turtle on the floor of the rib, covering it with a wet towel, and we headed back to land as quickly as possible. On the way, Antonella phoned the Centro de Recuperación to request them to pick up the turtle from the marina of Puerto Colón. There is a container in the marina especially for rescued turtles and that was where this one was headed. With difficulty, Antonella and Maria lifted the heavy turtle out of the rib and onto the quay. From there it was a short slippery walk to the container where the turtle would be safe shallow water until the Centro de Recuperación came to collect it. The vet would then examine it and give it the appropriate treatment. Ultimately, all going well, the turtle will be released back into the sea.

A build up of gasses

The turtle’s buoyancy problem was probably due to a build up of gasses. There are a number of possible reasons for this but the most likely cause is intestinal problems as a result of swallowing plastic or fish hooks. Swallowing plastic and fish hooks are two of the top three killers of turtles worldwide. The other top killer is drowning as a result of getting entangled in fishing nets and other non-biodegradable debris. A very conservative estimate of 50,000 Loggerhead turtles are killed each year from fishing alone. (Source: ‘Sea turtles of the World’ (2003) by Doug Perrine)