Featured Image Credit: GulfWorld/Facebook
By Alice Morris
Several months back, things weren’t looking so good for Chimmy the loggerhead sea turtle when he was discovered off of the Bay County Pier in Florida.
Fishermen found the 140-pound turtle with a large shark hook stuck in his rear flipper and a hook fragment in both his mouth and shoulder. Poor guy!
Luckily for Chimmy, the fishermen were well equipped to rescue him because of a program called the Responsible Pier Initiative. The special protocol was put into effect on many of Florida’s piers, so instructions could be readily available on how to properly handle an injured sea turtle.
The fishermen used equipment provided by the Gulf World Marine Institute, located in Panama City Beach, to rescue Chimmy. Then Gulf World quickly took over the turtle’s rehabilitation process and made sure he was restored back to good health.
There are currently 49 piers throughout the US that participate in the Responsible Pier Initiative, which was established to provide fishermen, and other first-responders, with the tools necessary to handle sea turtle injuries and strandings.
To date, 193 sea turtles have been rescued and over 7,000 pounds of marine debris have been removed from areas surrounding the participating piers.
This is awesome news for Chimmy and other loggerheads.
Globally, loggerhead sea turtles are considered a vulnerable species, with subpopulations ranging from “critically endangered” to “of least concern.” The subpopulation in the Gulf of Mexico is classified as “threatened,” but thanks to conservation efforts, there are now over 3,000 individuals in this area.
Chimmy was finally released back into the Gulf of Mexico, just off of Panama City Beach, in late September. Judging by the rapid pace at which he took off, he was happy to be swimming free in the ocean again.
Well, rapid for a sea turtle at least!