• Font Size    

Popular Pets

Zoo Babies: Cuteness Unleashed
E-mail

Close Window E-mail This Page

Two Slow Turtles Get Fast FedEx Trip

Required fields are marked with an asterisk(*)

The information you provide will be used only to send the requested e-mail and will not be used to send any other e-mail communications. Read more in our Privacy Policy

Send E-mail

   Print     Share +   
Aug 7, 2008 11:24 am US/Eastern

Two Slow Turtles Get Fast FedEx Trip

Righty & Lefty Were Born At The Turtle Hospital In Marathon 4 Years Ago

They Now Weigh 10 Pounds

A Green Sea Turtle Can Weigh About 400 Pounds When It Reaches Maturity At Age 25-30
MARATHON (CBS4) ― Two juvenile green sea turtles are about to take the ride of their lives as they're transported via FedEx from South Florida to their new home, an aquarium in Connecticut.

The turtles, named Righty and Lefty, have lived at the Florida Keys-based Turtle Hospital in Marathon since birth almost four years ago. Thursday evening, they'll get put on a plane headed to Connecticut.

The 10-pound turtles were hatched from eggs at the hospital in December 2004 as part of a research project conducted in conjunction with the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

The project focused on Fibropapillomatosis, caused by a herpes-like virus that affects sea turtles around the world. Afflicted turtles grow cauliflower-like tumors on their soft and hard tissues, both internally and externally.

The reptiles have lived in a tightly controlled environment their entire young lives at the Turtle Hospital, which is the only licensed veterinary facility in the world dedicated to treating sea turtles.

They cannot be released into the wild, marine animal experts say, because they have been nurtured by humans and would probably not survive.

"They've done their service to science," said Dr. Larry Herbst, the college's director of animal studies, who coordinated the research. "They will now be of great benefit to teach the public about sea turtles."

The reptiles will be moved from their 500-gallon habitat inside the hospital, to a 19,000-gallon tank at the Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk for exhibition and continued monitoring. A green sea turtle can weigh about 400 pounds when it reaches maturity at age 25-30.

The hospital's turtle ambulance will to transport the reptiles up the Florida Keys Overseas Highway Thursday afternoon to FedEx's Fort Lauderdale processing facility. Before being placed in large Tupperware containers for the trip, the turtles will be coated with Vasoline and their eyes treated with a special agent to retain moisture.

FedEx doesn't normally transport people, but Turtle Hospital founder and director Richie Moretti is being allowed to accompany the turtles every leg of the trip and FedEx is providing the courier service for free.

"These (the turtles) are as close as I will get to grandbabies," Moretti said. "I don't want to let them out of my sight until they safely get where they're going."

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

Videos of the weirdest and wildest pets

You need the latest Flash player to view video content.
Click here to download.

Click here to bypass this detection if you already have the latest Flash Player.

Local News

Top News Stories

© MMIX, CBS Television Stations Inc. All Rights Reserved.