Durham surgeon stitches sea turtles back together
Just as surgeon Mike Grafinger was putting in the final sutures, his patient started to wake up. “This, unfortunately, is the reality of sea turtle anesthesia,” N.C. Aquariums veterinarian Emily Christiansen said. After the turtle lost consciousness again, Grafinger finished repairing its lacerated flipper. He carefully threaded a metal wire back and forth between the torn pieces, suturing them together to heal. Finally, he sewed pieces of thin, red rubber tubing in a ring around the bloody tear to serve as a sort of splint.
In other news, several sea turtles are release and the first Leathback at Juno beach arrives plus more in the Conservation section. Where do turtles brumate in Staten Island, see the Biology section. Plus lots of odd ball stories in the Miscellanysection.
Turtle News From Around the World
Biology
Where do the turtles in Staten Island’s Clove Lakes hibernate in the winter?
Conservation
49 rescued sea turtles released into Gulf Stream
Brevard Zoo releases rescued sea turtle back into the ocean
First leatherback sea turtle nest in Florida found in Juno Beach
2015 Broward County, Fla. Sea Turtle Nesting Season Saw Second-Largest Number of Nests in History
North Carolinian to speak in Athens on ‘Wild Woman’ of Cumberland Island
Crime & Punishment
Legal loopholes leave non-native wildlife unprotected in Thailand
‘Chinese nationals smuggling Pakistan’s black pond turtles’
BSF rescues rare turtle species
Education
Oak Island nature program provides information from conservation groups
Health & Medical
Shelly, Manly’s most loved turtle is feared injured, say swimmers
Miscellany
A famous ‘Ben’ visited Albany and Lee County
Turtle sculpture created from nearly 1,000 bags of rice in China
Schoolboys keep Indigenous tradition alive diving for turtles in northern NSW rivers
Did You Know…
Brumation is an example of dormancy in reptiles that is similar to hibernation during cold weather. On the other end of the spectrum is a state known as aestivation for hot weather.
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Photo from Chuck Liddy.
