Also our new loggerhead was given a name today. We have decided on Acadia. Most seasons we choose a theme for naming rescued turtles; this year we have decided on National Parks. Here's a list of the parks.

But enough about the naming. What's going on with our gal...

Yesterday we took radiographs and found that she has a fairly full gastrointestinal tract. She is also missing part of her rear left flipper, most likely due to some predation as a smaller turtle. We removed the majority of barnacles and cleaned up her shell. Some folks visiting the aquarium got a good show of her receiving a fresh water bath in a small pool as we were removing the algae from her carapace.

Her blood work shows that she is still slightly anemic; because of this we may hold her a little longer than what we had originally planned. Some of the keratin on the carapace is also starting to slough off, which is not too surprising because of the barnacles and algae cover. We also want to make sure she is able to move the contents out of her intestinal tract and that there isn't a blockage.

We are planning on putting her into one of our sea turtle tanks in the Sea Turtle Recovery Room [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.]at some point today. We will monitor how she is swimming and hope the activity will help stimulate GI motility.

-Adam


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