National Aquarium celebrates 350 animals rehabilitated and released

Photo courtesy of the National Aquarium.

The National Aquarium has successfully rehabilitated and released 350 animals since its animal rescue program was launched in 1991 with the recent release of 11 sea turtles off the coast of Cape Hatteras National Seashore in North Carolina.

"We are proud to share that with the help of our local, regional, and national partners, we have rehabilitated and released 350 animals back into their ocean homes," said Caitlin Bovery, National Aquarium rehabilitation manager, in an organizational release.¹

"Each time we return an animal back into its natural habitat we are reinvigorated and motivated to continue this critical mission work."

This marks the second turtle release for the National Aquarium of the year with a total of 30 cold-stunned sea turtle patients, all named after musical instruments due to the theme for the 2021-2022 season. The turtles that were recently returned to their natural habitat include Tuba, Trombone, Ukulele, Bell, Oboe, Cello, Didgeridoo, Tambourine, Triangle, Guitar, and Saxophone. They were not healthy enough to be released earlier in the year, but since then have completely healed.

According to the release,¹ these turtles were treated at the Animal Care and Rescue Center for conditions often associated with cold stunning, (ie, pneumonia, dehydration, emaciation, shell and skin lesions, eye lesions, and blood infections). Particularly, a green sea turtle named Tuba arrived at the aquarium with a gash on the edge of the shell. National Aquarium Animal Health team members assessed Tuba's injuries and developed an extensive treatment plan to heal the wounds. Following months of topical wound care, bandage changes, a procedure to clean and debride the wound, plus supportive therapies (eg, antibiotics and fluids), Tuba fully recovered.

Reference

National Aquarium reaches milestone of 350 animals rehabilitated and released. News release. National Aquarium. May 5, 2022. Accessed May 9, 2022. https://aqua.org/contact-us/newsroom/press-releases/2022-05-05-national-aquarium-reaches-milestone-of-350-animals-rehabilitated-and-released