Kuda Huraa Juveniles – March

Hawksbill Turtle Juveniles, EI.N009.038 to 041, hatched 9 March 2017, Kuda Huraa, Maldives

038 – Homer –     12g/4.0cm; 158g/10.1cm (July); 284g/12.4cm (Oct); 468g/14.6cm (Dec);  810g/18.2cm (Mar);
039 – Banana –    12g/4.0cm; 222g/11.6cm (July); 473g/14.2cm (Oct); 763g/17.1cm (Dec); 1.5kg/22.3cm (Mar);
040 – George –    11g/3.9cm; 264g/11.5cm (July); 398g/13.7cm (Oct); 542g/15.1cm (Dec); 1.0kg/20.1cm (Mar);
041 – Quasimodo – 11g/4.0cm; 166g/ 9.9cm (July); 208g/11.1cm (Oct); 264g/12.1cm (Dec);  476g/14.6cm (Mar);
041 – Quasimodo – 2112g/22.7cm (Dec-20); deceased 14-Spet.

These four newly hatched Hawksbill turtles (EI.038-EI.041) were found on the beach by resort staff. Unfortunately, after excavation of the nest remains there were only 11 healthy individuals found in total, as most of the eggs had calcified within the first few days their development.

Seven of the turtles were released at first light the next morning, and the four smallest/weakest individuals have been admitted to our Centre. We will care for these turtles until they are fit and well enough to be released into the ocean, and with a much better chance of survival in the wild.

Quasimodo is not like the other turtles, as he suffered facial disfigurement and the loss of one eye, most likely as a result of a natural defect during his development in the egg. We are pleased that, despite the loss of his upper beak, he is still able to open his mouth and take small pieces of food. We will be monitoring his condition closely to ensure he is able to feed with this disability. Unfortunately it is very hard to predict how this injury will affect his survival in the wild, without the use of a top beak he will find it challenging to scavenge for food hiding in the reef wall.

April 2017
Quasimodo continues to be very active around his pool and shows continued interest in food, but his beak appears to be increasingly mis-shapen.

August 2017
These juveniles are very active and growing up quickly. They are all diving for fish and lobster (their favourite).
Quasimodo is very active and interested in food, although he is still having some problems caused by his misshaped beak so needs more time to eat a full ‘meal’.

October 2017
These juveniles are not so small anymore! They are gaining weight and increasingly active in the pool, with considerable interest in food and good diving ability.
Quasimodo is active and starting to eat for himself during his solitary feeding sessions. He persistently swims after dropped pieces of food but sometimes struggles to pick up the smaller pieces due to his beak deformity. He is increasing in weight and size, and he loves a good swim and spending some time at the bottom of the pool, but Quasi still has a long road ahead …

December 2017
Quasimodo is gaining weight and strength, still being the smaller of his siblings; sharing the pool with Ethan, spends his days playing and diving around the pool.

Homer, Banana and George are sharing their pool together. Banana being the biggest at the moment tends to play with Lily, as the other two will spend their time with Rosie when they can. You will normally find them hiding in their box at the bottom of the pool.

Banana was successfully released back into the ocean today, along with Lily and Shelby. The three turtles were released on a snorkeling trip at Makunudu (N.Malé atoll), and after a moment of orientation they swam down to start feeding.

George had grown to 2.5kg in weight (27.4cm length) and Homer was a little smaller at 2.2kg/25.7cm. They were successfully released today (along with Rosie), quickly swimming away from our boat and down into the depths. We wish them a long and trouble-free life out on the Maldivian reefs! 🙂

George

Turtle Growth Rates – weight of the turtles (in grams) against time

September

Quasi has been in our care for 17 months now; he is still growing, and is active in our turtle recovery pool (which he shares with Pine Cone). Sadly, due to his deformation he is not able to feed as quickly as the other juveniles. The deformation on his face hasn’t changed much, and he is adapting to swimming around and feeding on the bottom of the pool.
Quasi will stay in our care until he shows the ability to survive in the wild by himself; in the meantime, he is our official babysitter for all the new arrivals!

October
Quasi is growing at a slow pace (862g / 17.9cm), but he is very sociable with our new Green turtle juveniles.

December
Quasi has reached 990g in weight and 19.0cm in length.

November 2019

Updates April 2020

May 2020

Quasi continues to grow at a very slow rate. His breathing has improved, and he’s content to spend his days sleeping and resting at the bottom of the pool.

January 2021 updates

Quasi has now reached 2.18kg in weight. He shares a pool with our new hawksbill juveniles and seems to be getting along well with them! As always, he is excited for feeding time.

July

Quasimodo continues to be very active in the pool that he shares with Ali. He is growing at a slow rate, but always looks forward to feeding time.

August

Quasi continues to grow at a slow rate. He is not showing any new difficulties with breathing, and spends his days sleeping and resting at the bottom of the pool.

14 September

Sadly, Quasi has lost the fight. After declining health for a couple of days, he was found unresponsive in his pool, on the morning of 14 September. The subsequent necropsy revealed organ damage and spinal deformations. He will be sadly missed.