Arielle

juvenile Olive Ridley turtle (RB.LO.189), admitted January 2020, Landaa Giraavaru, Baa Atoll, Maldives

Weight / Length: 2.0kg / 31.0cm (on admission);

Arielle was found entangled in a large mass of marine debris and ghost netting (along with Taakey), floating on the ocean currents close to Parrot Reef, here at Landaa Giraavaru.

It is always an emotional experience to find stranded Olive Ridley turtles, who have become entangled in ghost fishing nets. Encountering multiple turtles in a single net is all the more saddening. Back in April 2015, we found an incredible seven turtles trapped in a single ghost net, and there have been similar encounters by teams in the Maldives working at Prodivers (2017) and the ORP (2014). These are regular reminders of just how damaging the ghost nets can be to marine wildlife, especially to Olive Ridley turtles.

Arielle was admitted to our turtle rescue centre, and was found to be extremely weak and dehydrated, and very close to dying. We immediately started fluid-injections and wound treatment, and she quickly regained a little more vitality.

Arielle is under close observation, but she is currently not eating any foods and remains very weak. She completed a 10-day course of Ceftriaxone antibiotics to fight any infections, and is still receiving daily fluids. She also receives eye drops for a potential eye infection.

Updates February 2020

Arielle was admitted to our Centre in a very wakened state, but she has made excellent progress over these last 4 weeks. On 20 February, she was transferred to Kuda Huraa for X-rays imaging diagnosis.

Updates April

Updates May

Arielle spends her days sleeping and eating, alongside pool-buddy Toby. She is receiving therapy on her front flipper, and proper movement is slowly returning.

3 October … Release Day!

Today, from a guest excursion dhoni, we successfully released Arielle back into the ocean. Bon voyage! 💙