Beyond Conservation: Inside Medical Interventions Saving Sick, Injured Sea Turtles In Kilifi

• In the picturesque Watamu beaches of Kilifi, Kenya, lies a pivotal turtle rehabilitation centre managed by Local Ocean Conservation
• Hundreds of sea turtles have received compassionate care at the clinic, symbolising a broader mission to protect marine ecosystems from human-related threats
• The treatment and rehabilitation of the turtles have been successful through collaborations with the local fishermen and veterinarians

Kilifi - In the heart of the pristine beaches in Watamu, a Turtle Rehabilitation Centre is making a real difference in the conservation of sea turtles along the Kenyan coast.

It is in this clinic that Fikiri Kiponda, a rescue coordinator at Local Ocean Conservation, which operates it, had one of the most memorable patients whose recovery left an indelible mark in his memory.

"She was one of our long-serving patients. We got her when she was very tiny. She was the size of my palm. It was a hawksbill turtle, which is one of the endangered species. She was washed ashore at Malindi, and we went to rescue her," Fikiri vividly recalls during an exclusive interview with this writer.

The rescue coordinator said the turtle was sick as she was swimming in circles.

"We took an x-ray, and we discovered that she had a spine problem, more of a deformity as her spine was curved. We stayed with her for six years trying to treat her," he added.

Fikiri said the treatment also involved taking her for sea baths to help her recover her buoyancy so that she could survive in the wild upon return to the ocean.

With time, she started recovering, and they first tested her swimming skills with a satellite tank.

"The satellite tank was donated by someone so that we could monitor her before releasing her back to the ocean. It was a turning moment when we released her after her recovery," he recalls.

According to Fikiri, the clinic has offered medical treatments to over 650 sea turtles who have been nursed back to health and released back to their habitat upon recovery.

Marine ecosystems constantly face threats, especially from human activities, and the clinic has significantly ramped up the conservation efforts of the silent inhabitants of the sea.

According to the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), there are seven species of sea turtles, five of which are found on the Kenyan coastline.

The species include the Green Turtle, Hawksbill, Loggerhead, Olive Ridleys, and the Leatherback turtles, which remain endangered.

"We have managed to treat over 650 sea turtles in our Turtle Rehabilitation clinic. We work very closely with the local vet around here who comes to examine the sick and injured turtles," Fikiri said.

How do turtles become sick?

According to the rescue coordinator, the treatment and rehabilitation of the turtles have been successful through collaborations with the local fishermen and veterinarians.

The turtles fall sick by ingesting plastic dumped into the ocean, boat strikes, and hook and bait injuries from locals trying to illegally poach them.

He said the hook injuries can also damage the turtles' shells, which makes it hard to repair. The specialists at the clinic first figure out where the hook is lodged and carefully remove it.

"Some fishermen bring us these sick turtles because when they are ill, turtles become floaters, so it is easy to spot them as they will be on the surface. The injuries they sustain on the shells are most difficult to treat, according to our experience. The vet can only offer some painkillers to the turtle to help manage the pain from the broken shell," he said.

For turtles who are ill after consuming plastic, they are kept at the clinic to flush out the harmful debris from their bodies.

The clinic also helps treat turtles with fibropapillomatosis, a condition characterised by the growth of tumours on the turtles' tissues and body.

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the condition commonly known as FP causes cauliflower-like tumours to form on the skin anywhere on the body, including the eyes and mouth of the turtles.

Though the condition has been documented in all seven species of turtles, the green turtles are most commonly and severely affected.

There is currently no cure for the condition.

"At the clinic, the vet checks how the tumour has grown, and if it can be removed. Sometimes, the tumour attacks the eyes. So the vet assess how severe the tumours are and sadly if it attacks the eyeballs, the turtles often have no chance," Fikiri said.

Sea turtle vet on Fibropapillomatosis

TUKO.co.ke also spoke to Veterinarian Kelvin Mbai Francis, who has been working hand in hand with lead vet Dr Faraj Feisal at the Turtle Rehabilitation Centre.

Dr Mbai, who has also done extensive research and studies on Fibropapillomatosis, said it is one of the common conditions they deal with at the clinic.

"As with any viral infection, there is no cure for this condition. We remove the tumours surgically as they grow around parts of its body and they impair the normal function of the animal. Once we remove the tumours, the turtles are kept at Local Ocean for a while to confirm whether they have recovered before they are returned to the sea," he said in an interview with this writer.

Nonetheless, not all hope is lost, as Local Ocean Conservation has been collaborating with local universities such as Pwani University to research on the causative agent of the disease.

The university has been picking up some of the tumours removed from the sick turtles for research.

Typical examination process of a sick turtle

Once sick turtles are taken to the rehabilitation centre, the specialist does a meticulous visual examination to determine the severity of the turtle's physical injuries or other difficulties the patient may be facing.

"We check their breathing, and check for injuries on the shells, or those from hooks then we take it from there," Mbai said adding that any turtle found to be in good health after examination is released back to the ocean.

Besides the FP condition, he said hook ingestions are also a common diagnosis in the turtles taken to the rehabilitation centre.

Floater syndrome, characterised by an inability of the turtle to dive, is another condition that the vets treat, albeit uncommon among sea creatures. They also admit turtles with chronic debilitation.

"It is also worth noting that most problems turtles face are human-driven. It is suggested that these anthropogenic factors are what lead to the manifestation of FP, " the vet who studied at the University of Nairobi stated.

Mbai, also one of the youngest sea turtle veterinarians, revealed that the field of sea turtle medicine has not had sufficient research as what is documented on the creatures is inadequate.

"For one to be a sea turtle vet, you need to learn under an experienced vet who deals with turtles. So you become one through apprenticeship after the normal vet training in school," he said.

Challenges in the conservation of sea turtles

Conservation of sea turtles has not been without challenges for Local Ocean Conservation.

According to Fikiri, poaching has been one of the major challenges that the turtles face as the local community at times sells the animals on the black market.

"When it comes to conservation, the local community must really understand and accept why you are trying to take care of the turtles. We try to give the fishermen, for instance, incentives when they rescue them," he said.

He, however, said the incentives might be significantly lower than what fishermen would perhaps get in the black market and thus, awareness campaigns on why taking care of turtles is important is more effective.

Encroachment of turtles' nesting sites is another challenge in turtle conservation as more hotels take over the beaches where the turtles lay their eggs.

"My appeal would be to the government to chip in, especially financially, as we need money to continue rescuing, treating, rehabilitating sea turtles," he said