Featured Image Credit: Clearwater Marine Aquarium
By Emily Persico
The “Cheeto Cam” is officially offline, and for good reason!
For the past week, people around the world were glued to a camera set to look at a small seahorse.
As some of our readers may recall, Cheeto, the very lucky seahorse in question, was rescued when a seagull dropped the poor creature from its beak at the feet of a young girl. After some quick thinking from the young girl’s mom, the folks at Clearwater Marine Aquarium helped rehabilitate Cheeto, and now they are happy to announce that Cheeto has been released back into the wild.
Cheeto spent a little over three weeks at the aquarium, receiving care from animal care staff.
After being fed copious amounts of ghost shrimp, the aquarium officials finally deemed Cheeto healthy enough to return to sea.
On Tuesday, the female lined seahorse made her way back into the Intracoastal Waterway off the coast of Clearwater, Florida. David Yates, CEO of the aquarium, conveyed the thoughts of the team helping Cheeto, saying, “We are pleased we have had the opportunity to rehabilitate her.”
Cheeto’s story of rehabilitation and release would not have been possible without the generous teamwork between the citizens who found her and the professionals who rehabilitated her. If you find a wounded animal in the wild, then act! Call your local wildlife authorities, the people who commit the lives to understanding and doing what is best for wild animals.