Featured Image Credit: KUSI News
By: Katharine Rose Fielding
Thanks to the efforts of SeaWorld San Diego, 15 sea turtles got their first taste of ocean freedom last month.
The Eastern Pacific Green Sea Turtles hatched at the park in 2009, and have been raised in captivity in preparation for life in the wild since then. They are a far cry from the tiny helpless hatchlings they were back then. At over two feet in length and 80 pounds, these guys are now ready to take on the wild.
All 15 released turtles are male, which means they will be spending most of their lives out at sea from now on. Every turtle was fitted with flipper tags and PIT tags that can be scanned electronically, and two were even given satellite transmitters that will allow scientists to track their locations.
Image Credit: SeaWorld San Diego
Hopefully the turtles’ instincts will take over, and they will migrate south to Mexico and Central America to find the normal feeding grounds for their species.
SeaWorld San Diego has been rescuing and releasing threatened sea creatures for over 50 years, and has successfully helped 25,000 individual animals recover and return to the wild.
Thanks for the hard work SeaWorld!