Kelly Tarlton's SEA LIFE Aquarium and Auckland Zoo are making every effort to ensure that three sea turtles that came into their care in critically ill condition after being rescued off Northland's west coast in late September will get a second chance at life.
The ingestion of plastic is the suspected cause of gut impaction in a young male hawksbill turtle, which last week was transferred from Kelly Tarlton's to Auckland Zoo for further x-rays and health checks. A second hawksbill and a green sea turtle were already receiving initial treatment at the zoo, although the hawksbill has since moved to Kelly Tarlton's now that its condition has stabilised. The green sea turtle remains critically ill.
"When Department of Conservation staff brought these turtles down from Dargaville and Kaitaia they were in a seriously bad way," Auckland Zoo senior vet Dr James Chatterton said.
"While they had varying individual problems, they were all severely emaciated, dehydrated, suffering from bacterial infections and covered in algae and barnacles. It's been a real team effort to get them to where they are now, and we just hope they'll make it.
"It's pretty distressing to see the impact we humans are having on marine life like this," he added.