Green (Chelonia mydas)

Stranding Location: Folly Beach, SC
Arrival Date: 4/26/2025
Age: Juvenile
Sex: Unknown
Weight: 1.49 kg (3.28 lbs)

Case History

Boaters spotted the tiny green floating asymmetrically and struggling in the waters near Folly Beach. They called the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) to report the sea turtle and were instructed on how to safely retrieve Tulip from the water. Our thanks to everyone involved in saving this special sea turtle and safely transporting her/him to the Aquarium!

Treatment

Upon arrival, Tulip was covered in epibiota and had one spot that was extremely raised and covered in algae. We conducted our physical exam, drew blood and set Tulip up for a radiograph which revealed what hid beneath the algae on Tulip’s carapace!

A large sea snail had taken up residence on Tulip! We identified this sea snail to be under the genus murex which is a type of predatory gastropod. But no fear, these sea snails do not predate on sea turtles! Tulip’s little friend likely just happened to crawl up onto Tulip’s carapace while s/he was resting on the sea floor and then hung on tight when Tulip needed to come up for air. This sea snail was still alive so we carefully pried it off and released it back into the Charleston Harbor.

Once we removed the snail, we weighed Tulip again to get a more accurate reading — the snail had accounted for more than 10% of Tulip’s weight! That’s a heavy load for such a small sea turtle and explains why Tulip was found floating asymmetrically in the ocean. Tulip received antibiotics, vitamins, fluids and eye drops to treat her/his various symptoms and was placed in a shallow-water kiddie pool to rest.

Updates

April 29, 2025: Tulip is showing fantastic improvement after only three days of rest and recovery! S/he has begun to eat and after carefully testing her/his swimming capabilities in deeper water, has graduated to a half-full tank of water.