As the manager at The Turtle Hospital in Marathon, Florida, Bette Zirkelbach has seen some tough cases. And in April, she shared a video of a green sea turtle who was recovering from a particularly difficult case of debilitated turtle syndrome.
For a rescued sea turtle, Sir Barksalot had certainly been through the wringer.
By the time he arrived at The Turtle Hospital, he was covered in barnacles, recovering from hypothermia, and suffering from fibropapillomatosis — a disease that causes cauliflower-like tumors on a sea turtle’s skin, eyes, mouth, and internal organs.
“‘Sir Barksalot,’ a juvenile green sea turtle rescued in northern Florida and transferred to The Turtle Hospital a week ago, is stable and ready for his barnacles to be removed,” Zirkelbach wrote in the social media post.
As one of five turtles with similar afflictions, Sir Barksalot was dubbed a member of the “Crusty Greens,” a group that included Shih Tzu, Cavalier, Boykin, and Rottweiler.
“When these juvenile green sea turtles first arrived at our hospital after being rescued in northern Florida, they were battling the effects of chronic cold stunning, fibropapillomatosis, and other serious health challenges,” Zirkelbach shared on Facebook on May 30.
“Many were weak, lethargic, and covered in barnacles, requiring months of dedicated medical care, rehabilitation, and monitoring.”
But after two months at The Turtle Hospital, Zirkelbach said the “difference is remarkable.”
“These turtles are healthier, stronger, and looking more like the wild sea turtles they were meant to be,” she said. “Their tumors have been treated, their strength has returned, and they’re spending their days swimming, diving, and thriving.”
The Turtle Hospital is constantly taking in new rescues. In December, a small green sea turtle named “Nutella” was rescued off the coast of Key Largo with a fishing line in her stomach and tumors on her body and eyes.
And last August, Zirkelbach and her staff saved a 170-pound loggerhead sea turtle named “Molly” from a debilitating tumor that weighed 10.1 pounds.
“Watching these transformations never gets old,” Zirkelbach said in her latest post. “Every turtle that regains its health is a testament to the power of rescue, rehabilitation, and the incredible teamwork that makes recovery possible.”
“The ‘Crusty Greens’ may have arrived in rough shape,” she said, “but they’re leaving us as confident, healthy turtles ready for their next chapter back in the ocean.”
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Header image via The Turtle Hospital
