A juvenile green sea turtle caught by a fisherman’s hook was released back into the ocean Thursday after it was rehabilitated at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach.
On August 9, when a fisherman accidentally caught the turtle, it became stuck in a rocky tidepool area along the shore, according to a spokeswoman for the Aquarium of the Pacific. The fisherman called the California Science Center asking for help because the turtle had a fishing hook stuck in its mouth.
The California Science Center helped take the turtle to the Aquarium of the Pacific, where one of the aquarium’s veterinarians, Dr. Lance Adams, was able to remove the hook from its mouth that same day, according to a spokeswoman for the aquarium.
The turtle was treated at the aquarium in a "behind the scenes" holding tank, according to the aquarium.
Fully healed, the turtle was released Thursday morning by the aquarium and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration from a boat off of the coast of Long Beach, a spokeswoman for the aquarium said.
This turtle is the second turtle that has been treated by the aquarium this summer.
Before this turtle was brought in, people found another injured turtle with a hook in its throat, according to the Aquarium of the Pacific. They contacted the Marine Animal Rescue who then brought the turtle to the aquarium, where the Aquarium’s veterinarians removed the hook from the turtle’s throat during surgery.
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According to a spokeswoman for the aquarium, that turtle is still being treated.
