A 375-pound loggerhead sea turtle named Bubba was returned to the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday, July 10, 2024, after he had spent three months in intensive rehabilitation at the Brevard Zoo in Florida. Crowds of people attended the event, cheering Bubba on as he made his way back to the sea at Lori Wilson Park.
Discovery and Rehabilitation
GIL COHEN-MAGEN/AFP via Getty Images
Bubba, the sea turtle, was discovered on April 10, 2024, in St. Lucie County by Inwater Research biologists.
The minimally obvious part of this turtle that bore injuries included trauma to both front flippers, seemingly an attack by a predator. In addition, the creature had a horrible case of infestation by marine leeches that caused anemia.
The biologists rescued Bubba from the water with the use of a crane and took him to the Brevard Zoo for treatment.Bubba received treatment at the Sea Turtle Healing Center at Brevard Zoo. The group attended to his injuries and treated him for leeches.
It is during this three-month care that his health improves dramatically so that he can begin building up his strength toward eventual release back into the wild. According to biologists, Bubba is estimated to be between 60-75 years old; thus, his recovery totaled.
Triumphant Return
The release event was a happy moment for the Brevard Zoo staff and the local community in general.
The journey of Bubba back to his home-to the ocean-was met by clapping and ecstatic cheers from the crowd that attended the event at Lori Wilson Park.
The overall message learned from this story of Bubba is that conservation is very necessary, but at the same time, these teams needed to rescue and rehabilitate injured marine life exist.
The Brevard Zoo has been at the vanguard of medical care and rehabilitation regarding sea turtles and other marine animals. Bubba's story is a great example of how positive conservation efforts can affect individual animals and the ecosystem more broadly.
What else is going on in terms of conservation efforts at Brevard Zoo?
Brevard Zoo is involved in various conservation programs at the local and global levels. The Sea Turtle Healing Center facilities have been used in the rehabilitation of sick and wounded sea turtles for release back into the wild.
Their Restore Our Shores project is geared toward living shoreline construction in the Indian River Lagoon, providing basic habitats for wildlife while striving to keep the water clearer.
The zoo is also active in endangered species increase and habitat restoration breeding programs, such as the Florida grasshopper sparrow and the Perdido Key beach mouse.
Added to this, Brevard Zoo is involved in FrogWatch USA, a citizen science program concerned with monitoring native amphibian populations, and is creating a safeguard population for the critically threatened frosted flatwood salamander.
This commitment to sustainability materializes into numerous green initiatives that secure better wildlife well-being while, at the same time, improving the quality of life for animals and people.
These denote Brevard Zoo's commitment to conservation and the position it occupies regarding species and ecosystem protection. You can get to know more about or support their work on their official website.
