Endangered Loggerhead Sea Turtle Returned to Wild in Florida Keys

Endangered loggerhead sea turtles range far and wide across U.S. water, so it's not surprising that one of them turned up off of the Florida Keys. What was unusual, though, was the fact that the almost foot-long juvenile turtle seemed to be sick. Now after being treated at Marathon's Turtle Hospital, the turtle is being released once more.

The small turtle, dubbed Charley, wasn't sick due to disease. Instead, the turtle was suffering from a stomach impaction. This phenomenon occurs when animals consume plastic or other debris that's not digestible. Eventually, the trash builds up and prevents the animal from eating or excreting waste. Over time, it will eventually kill the creature.

Fortunately for Charley, though, she received a bit of help. She was discovered floating in a Sargasso weed patch on May 10^th about 22 miles off of the Middle Keys, according to NBC News. She was then transported to a turtle hospital where the impaction was removed.

"It plugged up her bowel and she started to float," said Turtle Hospital founder and director Richie Moretti in a statement. "We gave her some antibiotics and gave her a little Metamucil and she's just much better."

Loggerhead turtles are actually the most abundant of all marine turtle species in U.S. waters. Yet their populations have continued to decline due to pollution, shrimp trawling and development of their nesting sites. While they seem to prefer coastal habitats, they will sometimes frequent inland water bodies and will travel hundreds of miles out to sea. The largest of all hard-shelled turtles, the endangered species can reach up to three feet in shell length and weigh up to 250 pounds.

This isn't the first time that Charley has met wildlife officials, though. She was actually nurtured as a hatchling as part of a wildlife conservation program in Colombia, which means she travelled about 2,000 miles to reach the Keys, according to the AP. Now, Charley is being released back into the wild where she will hopefully stay clear of plastic bags.