Around 5pm on Friday, Sept. 10, the Turtle Patrol was notified that a sea turtle had been caught on hook-and-line and that the folks that caught it were holding on to it so we could respond. The group had named the turtle "Doug." Joshua S and Mike V responded and found that the turtle was a Kemp's Ridley, the most endangered of the 7 extant sea turtle species. They determined that the hook was not removable on the beach. A DNR rep came to pick up the turtle and transported it to the Sea Turtle Care Center at the South Carolina Aquarium. The aquarium has named the turtle Adventurine, which is a green form of quartz. Adventurine underwent surgery to remove the hook on Monday, and initial indications are that he or she is doing well.
Adventurine is still a juvenile but a good bit larger than Pyrite, aka Christy, a Kemp's Ridley which we sent to the Sea Turtle Care Center earlier this year. We will now have two patients to track at the aquarium!
We are so glad the group contacted us after catching this turtle! To learn more about what to do if you hook a sea turtle while fishing, see our article on fishing bycatch:
https://www.siturtlepatrol.com/news/2021/5/16/sea-turtles-amp-fishing-bycatch