Meet one out-of-this-world green sea turtle: juvenile Apollo, a patient at our Sea Turtle Healing Center.  

Apollo was found washed ashore at Neptune Beach, a city near Jacksonville, on August 15. The turtle was noted to be emaciated and dehydrated with suspicious-looking spots on their body.  

Apollo was first taken to a fellow sea turtle rehabilitation center before the green was transferred to our Healing Center.  

Upon arrival to our Healing Center, it was obvious Apollo was being affected by fibropapillomatosis, a debilitating herpes virus that causes external and internal tumors to grow all over a turtle’s body. Depending on their size and location on a turtle’s body, these tumors can affect a sea turtle’s ability to see, swim and other bodily functions.  

Our Healing Center is one of seven facilities in our state that can care for and treat patients with FP. Though there are no cures for this disease, we can treat FP tumors by removing them surgically.  

For Apollo, our team recently began the process of removing several tumors, including one on the eye and under the flippers, using a combination of traditional surgery along with a carbon dioxide laser. This device was purchased thanks to a grant from the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) through their Sea Turtles Conservation Program, a partnership between NFWF, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).   

A laser was an especially effective tool for this procedure because it reduced bleeding by cauterizing as it cuts. This cautery can reduce pain by temporarily disconnecting the nerve ending in the skin until the area heals.  

It can take some time for all of the tumors to be removed. Surgery is always a risk, and we don’t want to overtax our patients. Several factors must be taken into account when determining whether a patient is ready for surgery. We rely heavily on blood values to help us make the decision and will only operate on turtles if they have enough red blood cells. FP tumors are vascular and blood loss is a big concern with surgery. 

Even with surgery, there are no guarantees that the tumors won’t eventually grow back. Still, we hope to get Apollo back to health and lessen some of this tumor load in order to eventually release the sea turtle back to the ocean. Stay tuned for future news on Apollo! 

Have you found a sea turtle that needs help? Visit this page or call the Sea Turtle Preservation Society at 321-206-0646. Want to help the Sea Turtle Healing Center? Support our Zoo, or view our Healing Center’s wishlist.