There isn't much to this story but I thought it was a truly amazing one.
Tzvika was run over by a lawn mower and suffered severe damage to her shell and a spinal injury which affected her ability to use her back legs. Veterinarians at the Wildlife Hospital in the Ramat Gan Safari near Tel Aviv, Israel attached two tiny wheels to Tzvika's shell to prevent it from being worn down as she moved and to help her to walk.
It's awesome that the veterinarians worked so hard to save her life and make it as good as it possibly can be. I can imagine she really gets along at a pretty good clip now that she's got her a nice set of wheels!
To see pictures of Tzvika, you can check out this article.
Showing posts with label Turtles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Turtles. Show all posts
Friday, January 7, 2011
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Smuggled Tortoises and Frogs Seized in Malaysia
In mid, July, two Malagasy women were arrested after attempting to smuggle almost 400 rare Madagascar tortoises and more than 40 tomato frogs in their luggage through the Kuala Lumpur airport. This is the second time smuggled animals have been discovered by officials in just a month. The Radiated and Ploughshare tortoises and frogs were destined for pet shops or to be used as food.
The Radiated and Ploughshare tortoises recently discovered in Kuala Lumpur are extremely rare. The trade of exotic animals is highly illegal and highly profitable, thus, it is thriving. Madagascar is a prime source of profitable fare as the animals and plants on the island are, for the most part, unique only to Madagascar.
For more information you can read an article from BBC News.
The Radiated and Ploughshare tortoises recently discovered in Kuala Lumpur are extremely rare. The trade of exotic animals is highly illegal and highly profitable, thus, it is thriving. Madagascar is a prime source of profitable fare as the animals and plants on the island are, for the most part, unique only to Madagascar.
For more information you can read an article from BBC News.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Gulf Oil Spill Threatened Sea Turtle Hatchlings Getting a New Chance at Life?
Scientists released hundreds of Kemp's ridley sea turtle hatchlings onto a beach at Padre Island National Seashore in Texas on Monday, July 26, 2010. The tiny, days-old turtles headed into the Gulf of Mexico in an area 400 miles from the oil spill. The little guys have got a lot of danger ahead of them that, sadly, a good many will not survive. Not only must they contend with the threats in nature, they must also deal with the dangers presented by the oil spill.
Loggerhead turtles from Florida were moved to safer eastern Florida waters but the Kemp's ridley turtles were released into the coasts of Texas and Mexico as originally planned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service. Since June, between seven and eight thousand Kemp's ridley sea turtle hatchlings have been released. Biologists are hoping that by time the Kemp's make their way to the spill zone, the mess will have been cleaned up.
Releasing the baby turtles was a move made not without some controversy. The biologists believe that keeping the turtles in captivity until the oil is cleaned up would cause them greater harm than good. Some fear that releasing the fragile and highly endangered turtles into the tainted waters will deal them a major setback.
Kemp's ridley sea turtles are the smallest living sea turtle species. Fully mature, they reach lengths of only 2-3 feet and weight around 100 pounds. They have been on the endangered list since 1973. By 1985 their numbers had dwindled to a dangerously low 7,702. Since the oil spill, 638 sea turtles have been found dead. A staggering 524 of those turtles were Kemp's ridleys.
For more information on the Kemp's ridley sea turtles, and other sea turtles being cared for by conservationists, you can read these articles:
Oily Future for Sea Turtle Hatchlings?
Despite Oil, Baby Turtles Being Released to Gulf
Loggerhead turtles from Florida were moved to safer eastern Florida waters but the Kemp's ridley turtles were released into the coasts of Texas and Mexico as originally planned by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service. Since June, between seven and eight thousand Kemp's ridley sea turtle hatchlings have been released. Biologists are hoping that by time the Kemp's make their way to the spill zone, the mess will have been cleaned up.
Releasing the baby turtles was a move made not without some controversy. The biologists believe that keeping the turtles in captivity until the oil is cleaned up would cause them greater harm than good. Some fear that releasing the fragile and highly endangered turtles into the tainted waters will deal them a major setback.
Kemp's ridley sea turtles are the smallest living sea turtle species. Fully mature, they reach lengths of only 2-3 feet and weight around 100 pounds. They have been on the endangered list since 1973. By 1985 their numbers had dwindled to a dangerously low 7,702. Since the oil spill, 638 sea turtles have been found dead. A staggering 524 of those turtles were Kemp's ridleys.
For more information on the Kemp's ridley sea turtles, and other sea turtles being cared for by conservationists, you can read these articles:
Oily Future for Sea Turtle Hatchlings?
Despite Oil, Baby Turtles Being Released to Gulf
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Sea Turtles Recovering After Gulf Rescue
More than one hundred sea turtles are on the road to recovery after having been rescued from the devastation in the Gulf of Mexico.
The Audubon Aquarium in New Orleans, Louisiana is caring for the sea turtles that include four Kemp's Ridley turtles that were completely covered in oil. Employees of the Aquarium meticulously cleaned the turtles, gave them antibiotics and fluids so the endangered reptiles could start working their way back to perfect health.
Visitors to the Audubon Aquarium can see the turtles. The reptiles will be living in their new, clean homes until the Gulf is perfectly safe for them to return to.
We are three months into this oil spill. Between April 30, 2010 and June 28, 2010 a total of 583 sea turtles were stranded in the spill. Four hundred and thirty two of those turtles were found dead. An additional four died after being rescued. A grand total of 136 sea turtles have been rescued and sent to various rehabilitation centers. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is currently working on removing some 70,000 sea turtle eggs from beaches that are at-risk from the oil.
For more information and to see a video of the turtles see this article. Check out "Little Dude". He's a shy one! They all look pretty happy and feisty in their new home, don't they?
The Audubon Aquarium in New Orleans, Louisiana is caring for the sea turtles that include four Kemp's Ridley turtles that were completely covered in oil. Employees of the Aquarium meticulously cleaned the turtles, gave them antibiotics and fluids so the endangered reptiles could start working their way back to perfect health.
Visitors to the Audubon Aquarium can see the turtles. The reptiles will be living in their new, clean homes until the Gulf is perfectly safe for them to return to.
We are three months into this oil spill. Between April 30, 2010 and June 28, 2010 a total of 583 sea turtles were stranded in the spill. Four hundred and thirty two of those turtles were found dead. An additional four died after being rescued. A grand total of 136 sea turtles have been rescued and sent to various rehabilitation centers. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is currently working on removing some 70,000 sea turtle eggs from beaches that are at-risk from the oil.
For more information and to see a video of the turtles see this article. Check out "Little Dude". He's a shy one! They all look pretty happy and feisty in their new home, don't they?
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Lonesome George: The World's Rarest Animal
He calls the Darwin Research center on the Galapagos Islands home. Researchers have tried, without success, for years to find another of his kind. He's Lonesome George, the only Pinta Island Turtle left.
The area George calls home was once full of the turtles but they, like so many other animals, were killed off throughout the years. Conservationists are trying to restore the animals and ecosystem in the area but it isn't always easy, especially in the case of George.
Local fishermen, angry that the conservationists have moved in and are trying to save the animals and ecosystem in the area, have been protesting. They have even gone so far as to barricade the researchers inside the Darwin Research Center and threatened to kill Lonesome George.
The fishermen aren't the only obstacle they have faced. Researchers have been trying, without success, to get the 80 year-old George to mate. When sperm collection proved unsuccessful, female tortoises were brought in. That was fourteen years ago. George seemed reluctant to mate despite having two beautiful ladies living with him. Finally, in 2008, after 36 years in captivity, George shocked conservationists by mating for the first time. However, the eggs laid by one of his female companions turned out to be infertile.
So, George has made progress! Hopefully, we will shortly have the excellent news that George has once again decided to strike up a courtship with one of the ladies he lives with and there will be some little George's running around at the Darwin Research Center. Go, George!!!
For more information:
Lonesome George, The Last Galápagos Giant Tortoise, May Become a Dad, July 22, 2009
Galápagos Giant Tortoise Saved From Extinction By Breeding Programme, June 27, 2010
A short video by BBC Worldwide about Lonesome George:
The area George calls home was once full of the turtles but they, like so many other animals, were killed off throughout the years. Conservationists are trying to restore the animals and ecosystem in the area but it isn't always easy, especially in the case of George.
Local fishermen, angry that the conservationists have moved in and are trying to save the animals and ecosystem in the area, have been protesting. They have even gone so far as to barricade the researchers inside the Darwin Research Center and threatened to kill Lonesome George.
The fishermen aren't the only obstacle they have faced. Researchers have been trying, without success, to get the 80 year-old George to mate. When sperm collection proved unsuccessful, female tortoises were brought in. That was fourteen years ago. George seemed reluctant to mate despite having two beautiful ladies living with him. Finally, in 2008, after 36 years in captivity, George shocked conservationists by mating for the first time. However, the eggs laid by one of his female companions turned out to be infertile.
So, George has made progress! Hopefully, we will shortly have the excellent news that George has once again decided to strike up a courtship with one of the ladies he lives with and there will be some little George's running around at the Darwin Research Center. Go, George!!!
For more information:
Lonesome George, The Last Galápagos Giant Tortoise, May Become a Dad, July 22, 2009
Galápagos Giant Tortoise Saved From Extinction By Breeding Programme, June 27, 2010
A short video by BBC Worldwide about Lonesome George:
Friday, June 25, 2010
Tiny Turtle Thrown in the Trash Reunited with Family
Tuesday, ten-year-old Carley Helm and her two sisters, Rebecca and Annie were on their way home to Milwaukee, Wisconsin from a visit with their father in Atlanta, Georgia. On a side trip to South Carolina, Carley saw a coin-sized turtle in a souvenir shop. Her father bought the turtle for her and she named it Neytiri.
When the girls were ready to go home to Milwaukee, Carley thought it would be fine if she took the tiny turtle on the plane with her. AirTran officials didn't seem to mind either, at first. As the plane was taxiing, it was called back and the turtle removed from the plane because of a no-reptiles rule AirTran, like most other airlines, have in place.
Rebecca Helm insists AirTran staff told her to throw the tiny turtle away--something they deny. Rebecca called their father and he was on his way to the airport to get Neytiri the Turtle. According to Rebecca, airline staff refused to contact her father to make transfer arrangements so she set Neytiri, tank and all down in a trash bin. She hoped that if the turtle was left there, her father could retrieve the tiny turtle.
However, when William Helm arrived at the airport, he nor airline employees couldn't find the reptile. Another AirTran employee had fished the turtle out of the trash, handed it off to a co-worker who had taken it home as a pet for their son.
Neytiri was retrieved and the little boy who thought he had a Yellow-Eared Slider was given two replacement turtles for his loss. AirTran sent the coin-sized Neytiri to Milwaukee free of charge--in the cargo hold.
I'm so very happy that Neytiri is safely back with her family. What I'd like to know? If the airline had no problem sending the turtle to Milwaukee in the cargo hold of the plane the second time around, why all the hubbub originally? It sure would have spared Carley and her little turtle a lot of misery.
For further details about this story with a very happy ending and to see pictures of the too cute for words Neytiri the Turtle, refer to this article.
When the girls were ready to go home to Milwaukee, Carley thought it would be fine if she took the tiny turtle on the plane with her. AirTran officials didn't seem to mind either, at first. As the plane was taxiing, it was called back and the turtle removed from the plane because of a no-reptiles rule AirTran, like most other airlines, have in place.
Rebecca Helm insists AirTran staff told her to throw the tiny turtle away--something they deny. Rebecca called their father and he was on his way to the airport to get Neytiri the Turtle. According to Rebecca, airline staff refused to contact her father to make transfer arrangements so she set Neytiri, tank and all down in a trash bin. She hoped that if the turtle was left there, her father could retrieve the tiny turtle.
However, when William Helm arrived at the airport, he nor airline employees couldn't find the reptile. Another AirTran employee had fished the turtle out of the trash, handed it off to a co-worker who had taken it home as a pet for their son.
Neytiri was retrieved and the little boy who thought he had a Yellow-Eared Slider was given two replacement turtles for his loss. AirTran sent the coin-sized Neytiri to Milwaukee free of charge--in the cargo hold.
I'm so very happy that Neytiri is safely back with her family. What I'd like to know? If the airline had no problem sending the turtle to Milwaukee in the cargo hold of the plane the second time around, why all the hubbub originally? It sure would have spared Carley and her little turtle a lot of misery.
For further details about this story with a very happy ending and to see pictures of the too cute for words Neytiri the Turtle, refer to this article.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Gulf Sea Turtles Getting Some Much-Needed Survival Help
Yesterday, I had a small update for you about Kevin Costner's "dream machines" going to work in the Gulf oil spill. Today, I have another update relating to the Gulf oil spill. This one is about the sea turtles that have been affected by the spill.
There are five species of sea turtles in the Gulf of Mexico and all five are protected as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has documented some 278 sea turtles that have been stranded by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Sadly, many of those turtles died. Federal officials have unfortunately found more dead than living sea turtles in the Gulf. Forty turtles that have managed to survive the spill are being washed up and given special care at the Audubon Aquarium in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Now, the staff of the National Aquarium and the Maryland state's veterinarian are preparing to lend a hand to help the endangered sea turtles from the Gulf. The National Aquarium is already housing four turtles from the New England area that they are hoping to be able to release some time this month to make room for turtles from the Gulf.
The National Aquarium works to "rescue, rehabilitate and release". They want the injured animals back in their natural habitats so they can flourish there rather than in captivity. They are capable of caring for six to ten animals at a time and are ready to help when they get the call.
Pneumonia from inhaling fumes, ulcerations from ingesting oil, starvation and fouled nesting areas are some of the problems the turtles face because of the disaster in the Gulf.
If you would like to read more about this development, please check out the article appearing on The Baltimore Sun web site.
There are five species of sea turtles in the Gulf of Mexico and all five are protected as endangered species under the Endangered Species Act.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has documented some 278 sea turtles that have been stranded by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Sadly, many of those turtles died. Federal officials have unfortunately found more dead than living sea turtles in the Gulf. Forty turtles that have managed to survive the spill are being washed up and given special care at the Audubon Aquarium in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Now, the staff of the National Aquarium and the Maryland state's veterinarian are preparing to lend a hand to help the endangered sea turtles from the Gulf. The National Aquarium is already housing four turtles from the New England area that they are hoping to be able to release some time this month to make room for turtles from the Gulf.
The National Aquarium works to "rescue, rehabilitate and release". They want the injured animals back in their natural habitats so they can flourish there rather than in captivity. They are capable of caring for six to ten animals at a time and are ready to help when they get the call.
Pneumonia from inhaling fumes, ulcerations from ingesting oil, starvation and fouled nesting areas are some of the problems the turtles face because of the disaster in the Gulf.
If you would like to read more about this development, please check out the article appearing on The Baltimore Sun web site.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Another Outrage in the Gulf: Sea Turtle Deaths
I really, really had no intention of blogging about the oil spill in the Gulf because, love them or hate them, I feel the news agencies have been doing a splendid job keeping us up to date on the situation there.
I don't think anyone, regardless of how they feel about the welfare and conservation of the environment, can say that the situation in the Gulf isn't extraordinarily serious. When you have thousands of gallons of oil spilling out into the waters endangering the plant and animal life there are few other words to describe it other than extraordinarily serious. It's an environmental disaster.
The clean up crews certainly have their hands full with the monumental job that is ahead of them.
But, this post isn't about the clean up crews, the oil companies or the economy. It's about sea turtles.
As of right now, at least 35 endangered sea turtles have washed up dead onto the shores in the Gulf coast. Yes, you read that right, a whopping 35! Necropsies have shown that the turtles are not ingesting the oil that is spilling into the waters they call home. They aren't sure what is killing them but they do have one possible suspect that they are investigating: the nets of "aggressive shrimpers or other fisherman".
The shrimp beds off the Gulf coast are currently in eminent danger from the oil spill. Shrimpers have been working overtime on "emergency shrimping sessions" to harvest as much of the shrimp as they can before the oil spill potentially wipes most or all of it out.
Investigators are currently looking into whether or not shrimpers and fishermen have removed the turtle excluder device built into their nets in their hurry to grab as much from the sea as they can before the oil puts a damper on them.
Kemp's Ridley sea turtles are some of the most endangered sea turtles in the world and they are being found dead. Investigators are gathering tissue samples and other evidence and holding in it "the chain of evidence" in the event this issue ends up in court. Marine investigators as well as state and federal investigators are working on this mystery.
There is some speculation that the turtles have possibly eaten fish that were tainted by the oil spill.
Seeing as how there isn't any solid proof the shrimpers and fishermen are responsible for the sea turtle deaths I don't want to jump to any conclusions. If time does prove the fishing industry is the culprit, I feel they have no defense. Shrimp harvesting or fishing for the seafood industry is no excuse for the deaths of these gorgeous and endangered turtles. The plants and animals in the Gulf have enough working against them as it is without even more human interference in their lives.
For more information on this you can check out the following articles: MSNBC.com & CBSNews.com. Onearth.org also has a write up about this issue. (Please note that these articles contain photos of deceased sea turtles.)
I don't think anyone, regardless of how they feel about the welfare and conservation of the environment, can say that the situation in the Gulf isn't extraordinarily serious. When you have thousands of gallons of oil spilling out into the waters endangering the plant and animal life there are few other words to describe it other than extraordinarily serious. It's an environmental disaster.
The clean up crews certainly have their hands full with the monumental job that is ahead of them.
But, this post isn't about the clean up crews, the oil companies or the economy. It's about sea turtles.
As of right now, at least 35 endangered sea turtles have washed up dead onto the shores in the Gulf coast. Yes, you read that right, a whopping 35! Necropsies have shown that the turtles are not ingesting the oil that is spilling into the waters they call home. They aren't sure what is killing them but they do have one possible suspect that they are investigating: the nets of "aggressive shrimpers or other fisherman".
The shrimp beds off the Gulf coast are currently in eminent danger from the oil spill. Shrimpers have been working overtime on "emergency shrimping sessions" to harvest as much of the shrimp as they can before the oil spill potentially wipes most or all of it out.
Investigators are currently looking into whether or not shrimpers and fishermen have removed the turtle excluder device built into their nets in their hurry to grab as much from the sea as they can before the oil puts a damper on them.
Kemp's Ridley sea turtles are some of the most endangered sea turtles in the world and they are being found dead. Investigators are gathering tissue samples and other evidence and holding in it "the chain of evidence" in the event this issue ends up in court. Marine investigators as well as state and federal investigators are working on this mystery.
There is some speculation that the turtles have possibly eaten fish that were tainted by the oil spill.
Seeing as how there isn't any solid proof the shrimpers and fishermen are responsible for the sea turtle deaths I don't want to jump to any conclusions. If time does prove the fishing industry is the culprit, I feel they have no defense. Shrimp harvesting or fishing for the seafood industry is no excuse for the deaths of these gorgeous and endangered turtles. The plants and animals in the Gulf have enough working against them as it is without even more human interference in their lives.
For more information on this you can check out the following articles: MSNBC.com & CBSNews.com. Onearth.org also has a write up about this issue. (Please note that these articles contain photos of deceased sea turtles.)
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