Lethargic Loggerhead Nursed Back to Health
South Florida turtle was at death's door
Kelly Ireland/Mote Marine Laboratory
Vicki Lee, the once-sick loggerhead sea turtle, makes her way back into the ocean after she's outfitted with a new high-tech satellite transmitter.
A loggerhead sea turtle who's been a frequent visitor to South Florida over the past 20 years was released back into the ocean after she was nursed back to health from a serious illness.
"Vicki Lee" first showed up in Casey Key in 1988, when she was tagged by researcher Vicki Wiese at the Mote Marine Laboratory, whom she was named after.
She was spotted 12 times by Mote staff since then, but when she turned up in Naples in April, she was weak and emaciated and it looked like it might be her last trip ashore.
An initial medical evaluation showed that Vicki Lee might be suffering from lethargic loggerhead syndrome, which causes turtles to become weak and sometimes unable to move.
But after 160 days of rehabilitation in which she gained back 65 pounds, Vicki Lee was deemed fit to go back to the ocean, and was placed into the Gulf of Mexico Friday.
Weiss couldn't believe it when she saw that Vicki Lee still had her '88 tag on her flipper.
"To have this tag stay on is amazing," said Wiese. "By the time they came back to nest again, at least one of those tags was usually gone."
Vicki Lee was given a state-of-the-art satellite transmitter that Mote researchers hope will track her travels for the next year or so.
Anyone who wants to can follow Vicki Lee here.
Posted Monday, Sep 28, 2009 - 12:16 PM EST
