Mary

Arrival Date: June 3, 2024

Patient Profile

Name: Mary

Species: Green Sea Turtle

Weight: 28 pounds 

Reason for visit: Entanglement and Fibropapillomatosis (FP)

Location Found: Matheson Hammock Park, Miami, FL.

Status Report

06/03/24: The local fire department of Miami responded to a unique call for help. A young Green Sea Turtle was found ashore with fishing lines and hooks tightly wrapped around its front flippers. Responders reached out to the Miami Dade Sea Turtle Group for assistance in transporting the newly named “Mary” to The Turtle Hospital. While obtaining Mary, the Miami Dade Sea Turtle Group noticed unfortunately Mary was also covered in medium to large size Fibropapillomatosis (FP). Once Mary arrived our rehab team quickly jumped into action to remove the tightly wound fishing line, unhook the painful hooks, and began initial supportive care to help Mary feel more comfortable after her long journey. Mary was started on intravenous fluids, medications, wound care, and placed in her new hospital tank for some much needed rest. We are thankful for the first responders of the Coral Gables Fire Department and the Miami Dade Sea Turtle Group for working together to help this young sea turtle in need. Mary will continue her care here at The Turtle Hospital, stay tuned for more updates on her recovery. Make sure to send her well wishes during your upcoming visit to The Turtle Hospital. 

06/28/24: Miss Mary has been a wonderful patient for her rehab team. At first Mary wasn’t very interested in eating, to ensure she was receiving proper nutrition rehab staff started her on an intravenous (IV) nutrition along with fluids. This process was just what Mary needed and soon began to regain her appetite and munch on her seagrass and seafood salads. After being approved for surgery by lead veterinarian Dr. Norton, Mary had her first surgery to remove the Fibropapillomatosis (FP) masses located on her eyes and body. With a smooth postoperative recovery, Mary is currently enjoying the additional check ups by her rehab team. Mary will receive medicated eye drops for the next 8 weeks to help her eyes heal from the surgery and protect her eyesight. Good job Mary on your first surgery! Make sure to say hello to this lady during your next visit to The Turtle Hospital, she is located near the main pool by our resident sea turtles.

07/27/24: Mary has been doing wonderful here at The Turtle Hospital. With the help of her rehab team, Mary’s surgical sites have been healing nicely and she is almost done taking her eye medication. She will soon receive an exam from Dr. Norton to see if she is ready to start practicing for her swim test. This is the test she must pass to be approved to return to the ocean. In the meantime, Mary has been eating all her veggies so she can continue to stay healthy and strong. Great job Mary, we are so proud of the hard who you’ve done so far.

A Swim Test is compiled of 3 requirements for our sea turtles to return to the ocean. They must have 1 good eye, 3 strong flippers, and be a fast swimmer to out run their main predator-sharks. 

Did you know sea turtles can do sprints of up to 30-35mph! 

8/20/24: After a recent exam with Dr. Norton, Mary has been approved to start practicing for her swim test. Great job Mary! Mary has been showing off her swimming skills to the many visitors of The Turtle Hospital and has had a very strong appetite. For all our patients that go up for release we host a celebration to wish them luck on their new journey, make sure to follow our Facebook and Instagram for when we post details of Mary’s release so you can join us here in the Florida Keys.

09/01/24: After much hard work Mary has received her flipper tags and microchip for preparation in her future release. Great job Mary! As we are excited to release Mary soon, we are currently waiting for a clear opening in the weather. As forecast shows there is a hurricane on its way for Florida. Since it is too early to tell which direction or force of this pending storm we will be waiting till after the hurricane to release Mary and hope the public is able to join in this wonderful moment. Please stay tuned to our social media for further details of her release, we will post online in advance the day, time, and location. Mary is currently have a great time enjoying the larger hurricane tanks to swim and loves saying hello to Bender, a Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle who is a permanent resident here at The Turtle Hospital and Fab Five member. 

09/28/24: This week was very different for our current patients and resident sea turtles. As Hurricane Helene made its way through the gulf, The Turtle hospital prepared for the worst by relocating our turtles to the hospital tanks on land and larger hurricane tanks on land. These tanks are built to withstand a CAT 5 hurricane. All sea turtles within the tidal pool were evacuated out as the storm surge could pose a serious danger to our turtles. Mary, already within the hurricane tanks, was moved to the other half of the tank to join resident Kemp’s Ridley and Fab Five member Bender. As well as Janice and Melania, two young green sea turtle patients. Together they kept each other company during the storm, fellow resident and Fab Five member April was bunked nearby on the other half of the tank. The Turtle Hospital was luckily only hit with heavy winds and rain, and back open to the public with minor damage from the strong winds. To see more on how we prepared our sea turtles for the storm check out our Instagram for videos. 

Release

We are happy to announce Janice was released back out to sea on October 3, 2024 alongside a few fellow sea turtle patients who have successfully recovered from their injuries and illnesses. She was released back to the reef off the coast of Key Largo. We are so happy this young lady made it back out to sea to continue her adventures out at sea.

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