Shakti

juvenile Olive Ridley turtle (RB.LO.213), admitted 8 May 2020, Soneva Jani, Noonu Atoll, Maldives

Weight / Length: 11.0kg / 42.5cm (on admission);

Shakti, a juvenile Olive Ridley turtle, was found entangled in a ghost net (discarded fishing gear) by staff at Soneva Jani (Noonu Atoll). She was badly injured and unable to dive, so she was transferred to Landaa Giraavaru to get medical attention.

Shakti was found to be very dehydrated, and had deep lacerations around all her flippers and plastron. She also had a severe infection on the tip of her right front flipper. Despite all this, she was very energetic and eager to dive.

Shakti received a fresh water bath immediately on arrival, and was then administered fluids to correct her hydration status and antibiotics to fight the infection. Once stabilised, she underwent surgery to remove the infected bone tissue on her right flipper. She’s recovering nicely and is already eating and attempting to dive.

26 July 2020 … Release Day!

Shakti completed her antibiotic treatment and recovered well from surgery.  She started to dive again, and she was soon able to chase her food and rest at the bottom of her recovery pool.

Before release, Shakti was fitted with a satellite tag, which will enable us to follow her movements in the ocean. Long-term, we can assess our rehabilitation successes, and learn more about the migratory patterns of Olive Ridley turtles (which are rarely seen in Maldivian waters, and usually arrive as a result of entanglement in drifting ghost nets from overseas).

Shakti was successfully released on 26 July, from the beach outside our Marine Discovery Centre at Landaa Giraavaru.

Visit our Turtle Tracking page, to follow Shakti’s travels as she swims around Baa Atoll before heading out to the open ocean.

Safe travels, and good luck little one! 💚