Abstract

A 12-month-old loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta) arrived at a rescue centre with bilateral fore flipper paralysis and inability to dive as a result of it. Although the flipper paralysis was reversed completely with a thorough physiotherapy program over an eleven-month period, a pneumocoelom was detected at this time. Intracoelomic air was detected first through X-rays and then more accurately through a computerized axial tomography (CT) scan. An exploratory coeliotomy under full anesthesia was performed to detect and correct suspected pulmonary tears, but none were detected. Physiotherapy was discontinued because it was suspected to be the cause of the pneumocoelom once other factors were ruled out. The air remitted spontaneously after the intervention but the buoyancy problems remained. Euthanasia was at this time a reasonable consideration due to the inability of this animal to perform its natural behaviours, preventing its survival at sea, but the attachment of weights to its plastron and moving the animal to a bigger tank made this turtle capable of regulating its lung volume and dive, which allowed for its successful release back to the wild after two years in rehabilitation.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Marina Agulló, the management and the entire group of volunteers of the rescue centre CRAM; without them this animal would have never recovered and been able to be released back into the wild.

* Presenting author