South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Hospital

Last Tuesday, March 1, the lab met at the South Carolina Aquarium where we were able to look around at the exhibits but also got a tour of the behind-the-scenes action, including the Sea Turtle Hospital. The “hospital” was the part of the aquarium I enjoyed the most because I love sea turtles. There were green turtles (Chelonia mydas), Kemp’s ridley turtles (Lepidochelys kempii), and loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta).

We were told that the average length of stay of the turtles in the “hospital” is 7-8 months. They had turtles of all different ages and sizes, being treated for many different health issues. The largest turtle I remember there was a loggerhead weighing 80.9 kg (178 lbs). It had an injury to its front left flipper, prolapsed cloaca, and septicemia. This turtle was still considered to be a juvenile, as the weight range for this species is 170-350 lbs, with the largest recorded individual being 500+ lbs.

The only sea turtle I was able to get a good picture of was a juvenile green turtle listed to be about 10 lbs and may have been about 1 ft long. These turtles, as adults, have a weight range of 250-450 but have been recorded to be 650+ lbs. The green turtle’s range is said to be throughout the western Atlantic, from Massachusetts to northern Argentina. These turtles can be told apart from hawksbills by looking at the head plates found between the eyes. The green turtle has one pair between its eyes (which can be seen in the picture) and the hawksbill has two pairs between its eyes.

(James Helton, SC)