‘TEDDY’ GOING HOME TO SEA ON WORLD TURTLE DAY
Teddy the sea turtle was found near Hutchinson Island in January in rough shape and starving. Now, the turtle will be released back into the ocean on Wednesday, World Turtle Day, which is a “happy coincidence,” said Hannah Deadman-Arnst, public relations and communications coordinator for the Loggerhead Marine Center.
Teddy came to the Loggerhead Center on Jan. 26 after staffers from Inwater Research Group found the turtle floating in the St. Lucie power plant intake canal. At the time, Teddy weighed 113 pounds, which is underweight for sub-adult turtles. But, the turtle’s main issue was that it was chronic debilitated, which “is like having the flu but for turtles,” said Deadman-Arnst.
When chronic debilitated turtles like Teddy are brought into the center, they are usually covered with leeches and barnacles and suffer from anemia, said Deadman-Arnst.
Hospital staff spent the past five months administering fluids, antibiotics, iron, vitamins and parental nutrition supplements to help treat Teddy’s anemia and get the animal back to a normal weight.
Teddy, who was named after CNN’s founder and environmentalist Ted Turner, now weighs 125 pounds and is healthy enough to return to the ocean. The animal’s gender cannot be determined until it becomes an adult.
The sea turtle will be released from the Loggerhead Center, 14200 U.S. 1, in an event that begins around 10 a.m. Staff will talk about Teddy’s journey before going to the beach adjacent to the center for the release at 10:30 a.m.
Teddy’s release comes almost two weeks after Jupiter locals tried to save a female leatherback turtle that was struck by a boat. The Loggerhead Center helped transport the turtle to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s lab in Tequesta, where it had to be euthanized.
Deadman-Arnst said weather may affect the scheduling of Teddy’s release and encourages those who want to attend to check marinelife.org and the center’s social media channels for updates.