We have received some optimistic news on two of the Kemp's ridley sea turtles. Lab results for Bubba have come back negative for bacteria. We are still waiting for fungal results. And...


Orion swimming

Orion had radiographs last week the x-ray shows that the area of consolidation is shrinking and air is returning to those healing sections of the lung.

-Adam

Our Kemp's ridley called Bubba recently underwent a procedure in the Aquarium Medical Center (AMC). After this turtles last set of radiographs we noticed an increase opacity in the right lung compared to the left. The animal was then scheduled for a bronchoscopy.

Goose

On November 20, 2008, Goose stranded in Eastham and came to the Aquarium for treatment. Goose, named for a gooseneck barnacle on his carapace, is a green sea turtle. When he first arrived he was not breathing on his own and had to be placed on a ventilator. He was also given emergency drugs to stimulate his heart and breathing. After about two hours, Goose became alert and was swimming in a kiddie pool for short periods by the end of the day!

As posted on February 11, Goose spent some time being cared for at the University of New England Marine Animal Rehabilitation Center and returned to the Aquarium when our Sea Turtle Recovery Room opened. [The space that housed the Sea Turtle Recovery Room is now The Trust Family Foundation Shark and Ray Touch Tank. Rescued sea turtles are now cared for at the new, much larger Animal Care Clinic in Quincy.] He is now off medications and doing very well. He is currently on a diet because he eats everything in sight, except his vegetables of course. We offer him romaine lettuce because green sea turtles eat plant material in the wild, but so far he prefers fish. There is a great view of him in our Sea Turtle Recovery Room so stop by and visit!

- Kerry

We recently received the results back for Orion our only Kemp's ridley that is still in the Aquarium Medical Center. The biopsy samples that were sent out all have come back negative for bacteria and fungal infection. The diagnosis from the lab is Granulomatous and heterophilic pneumonia. (Video of the biopsy is here. Description of the biopsy is here.)




So what does that mean? In layman's terms Dr. Innis describes the biopsy of the lung as inflammation and nodules of scar tissue due to a previous infection. We will continue with our current medication regime and have another CT scan done in about a month.







Clinically this turtle is doing pretty good. The turtle's appetite has increased and is starting to dive for food and it is less dependent on being fed off of tongs. It is also resting on the bottom of the tank more often. These are very encouraging signs to us.

-Adam

We photographed these two little wonders sitting outside the Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Clinic. [The space that housed the Sea Turtle Recovery Room is now The Trust Family Foundation Shark and Ray Touch Tank. Rescued sea turtles are now cared for at the new, much larger Animal Care Clinic in Quincy.] They appeared amazed and peaceful while watching the sea turtles swimming around. In particular, their curiosity and awe while watching Route swim around his tank reminded me of why I became a sea turtle biologist in the first place.

-Connie

Okay, you caught us. BUT ... while the turtles continue to recover I thought I'd use this blog to share some of the work our Rescue Rehab team does outside the aquarium.

Just yesterday the team spent the afternoon responding to an adult harp seal that traveled a little far up a tidal river in Saugus! I wouldn't say it was stuck, but it was in shallow water and it would have had a long trip back to the ocean. So, the team decided to relocate the animal to a beach in Nahant.
The decision to relocate was also for the safety of the public. If someone who didn't know any better tried to approach it, the animal might respond with defensive, aggressive behavior, including biting.

Want to know what to do (and what NOT to do) if you see a seal on the beach? Check out the rescue rehab pages.

In a prior post I wrote about "Route" starting physical therapy on its own to help increase the muscle of both rear flippers (BRF) and the right front flipper (RFF). Here is video of the exercise. Once the turtle realized we were videotaping it stopped and decided it was time to eat!

It has been about a month since Route, a Kemps ridley sea turtle has left the aquarium medical center to take up temporary residence in the West Wing Sea Turtle Recovery Ward. [The space that housed the Sea Turtle Recovery Room is now The Trust Family Foundation Shark and Ray Touch Tank. Rescued sea turtles are now cared for at the new, much larger Animal Care Clinic in Quincy.] There the turtle is continuing rehabilitation as the 2008 cold-stunned sea turtles get closer to release.

We have recently stopped antibiotic therapy on this turtle because we learned that the cultures we sent out on 2/25/09 are negative for any growth. Route is still on an antifungal medication while we await the results of those cultures. Fungal cultures take on average about 2-3 weeks longer than bacterial cultures to get final results back.

Route has started doing physical therapy on its own, using the systems outflow as a sort of water treadmill. The turtle will swim against the current in one place for quite a while in between sleeping and eating. Although most of the left front flipper (LFF) was removed the turtle is starting to use it fairly effectively while turning and accelerating. Route has also gained over 1 kg (2.2 lbs) in the past month, increasing its body weight by approximately 16%. We can really feel the added mass when we bring the turtle out for exams.

Clinically the turtle is doing excellent. Eating and swimming well. The wounds are healing and we are extremely confident that the turtle will be released this summer.



As you can see in the picture, the large crack on the carapace is healing well.

-Adam

This is an update on Orion, the Kemp's ridley sea turtle with pneumonia. I last reported about Orion in January. I am happy to say that Orion began to feel better after starting nebulizer treatment, injecatble antibiotics and oral antifungal medication. He is now eating well and swimming normally.

However, we began to notice that the back end of his right lung looked more abnormal on x-rays.
The x-ray indicates that there is abnormal tissue in that part of the lung. We call this "consolidation," and it could mean that there is still an area of infection, or it could just be dense scar tissue that formed after the original infection had resolved. To further investigate this area, Orion had a computerized tomography (CT) scan at Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine.

Based on results of the CT scan, we decided to perform a lung biopsy on March 4 to determine whether there was still infection within the consolidated tissue. We used measurements from the CT scan to determine the precise location for the biopsy. Because the lung is just below the top shell or carapace, we can biopsy the lung by making a small hole through the shell, and inserting instruments into the lung.


Orion was put under anesthesia, then had a small hole (5 mm diameter) drilled through the shell. We then penetrated the lung to take a swab to test for bacteria and fungus.

Then, we inserted an endoscope into the lung. The endoscope has a camera that allows us to view the inside of the lung on a video screen:

There are several small brown nodules in the lung which may be areas of current or past infection. The scope also has ports through which we can introduce instruments to take tissue samples or biopsies.

When the surgery was done, we sealed the hole with antibiotic paste, a small bandage, and waterproof epoxy. We will remove the patch in a few weeks to see if it is healing OK. Orion recovered quickly from surgery and was back in his pool swimming happily by the end of the day.

The tissue biopsies have been sent to a lab for microscopic analysis (histopathology). This will allow us to see whether there is bacteria, fungus or other abnormal cells. So far the culture tests have not found any evidence of infection. Orion can be seen on display in our Aquarium Medical Center. In fact, the entire surgery was performed on display in the Medical Center. So stop by to visit. You never know what cool stuff you might get to see!

Thanks to the staff at Tufts for assisting with Orion's CT scan.

- Dr. Innis