Cannoli`s Story

I found tangled in scraps of raffia, ropes and plastic.

Know your story

On August 26, an Italian vessel sailing near Port de SantAntoni (Ibiza) when they spotted a specimen of sea turtle (Caretta caretta) that needed help.

The ship`s sailors following the protocol, immediately notifying the 112.

Once the animal arrived at port, an Environment agent and a technician of the CREM (Center for the Recovery of Marine Species in Ibiza) were waiting to transfer the sea turtle to the Eivivet veterinary clinic where the first assistance was performed.

The animal was entangled in raffia, ropes and plastic bottles. All this preventing the animal to dive, in addition, the turtle had swallowed remains of that raffia and was bleeding from the mouth.

Follow the Cannoli route here.

Given the state of the turtle’s health, it was decided to transfer the specimen to Palma Aquariums Marine Fauna Recovery Center, in Mallorca. The journey was made possible thanks to the agreement signed with the shipping company BALEARIA for the transfer of sea turtles between the Balearics and mainland Spain.

The next day, “Cannoli” went to the Hospital Veterinari Aragó where the animal underwent a complete examination, checking that the results of the blood tests were within normal limits and that the entanglement of the left flipper had not caused bone fractures or compromised the blood supply. Only mild soft tissue injuries and inflammation was observed. In addition, the rest of the swallowed raffia was extracted and was still lodged in the oesophagus.

After a few weeks of treatment in Palma Aquariums Marine Fauna Recovery Center, Cannoli experienced a positive recovery which allowed the veterinary team to proceed to sex the animal, as it is impossible to determine the gender due to the size or age of the animal.

Thanks to the procedure performed by laparoscopy, it proved that Cannoli was a male specimen, which is suspected that they are currently in the minority in terms of numbers compared to female specimens.

Due to Cannoli’s rapid and prompt recovery, the SOCIB research team will place an electronic device on the turtle’s shell that will offer position data, sea temperature and depth of immersion in real time through satellite connection from the moment the animal returns to the sea. This action is part of “Turtle Oceanógrafas”, a research project funded by the BBVA Foundation in which the Palma Aquarium Foundation collaborates.

On September 21st, 2017 Cannoli was returned to his natural environment, the Mediterranean Sea, released on Cala Agullabeach in Capdepera. The location site of the release was determined based on an innovative system that integrates data in real time of marine traffic and sea state predictions,  that has been developed by the Coastal Observation and Prediction System of the Balearic Islands (SOCIB) to identify the most favourable areas for the release of sea turtles.