Back to the sea for hooked turtle
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Science Writer
A green sea turtle was released back into the ocean at Hanauma Bay yesterday after being brought ashore Sunday with two fishing hooks in its flesh and trailing a tangle of line.
Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser
One hook in the animal's flipper was removed on the beach, and a second hook in its neck was surgically removed by veterinarian Robert Morris of Makai Animal Clinic in Kailua, who concluded that the animal was healthy enough to be returned to the sea.
The turtle is carried to the water's edge. Sea turtle biologist George H. Balazs and marine turtle biotechnician Cori Wilbanks grab the front flippers while Jerry Meral, director of the National Wildlife Federation, and his colleague Matt Little, right, handle the back.
Sea turtle hookings and entanglements in fishing line are increasing, especially on O'ahu, which has about 75 percent of the known cases that occur in Hawai'i, said George Balazs, sea turtle biologist with the NOAA Fisheries' protected species office.
"I think it's because there are more and more opportunities for interactions on this island," Balazs said.
Other marine animals also suffer from entanglements with fishing equipment and other marine debris. Wildlife officials have responded to several cases of hooked Hawaiian monk seals in recent years, apparently because the seals are attracted to the bait.
Each year, a number of seals are freed when they are trapped in abandoned fishing nets and tangles of ropes that wash onto the reefs of the main Hawaiian Islands and the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
Tools for freedom
Humpback whales also can become entangled in ropes, fishing net and other debris, and marine mammal experts have developed specialized tools and techniques for freeing them. There are several sightings each year during the winter whale season of the animals dragging ropes that are sometimes still attached to buoys.
In March, a team off Maui freed a whale that had ropes caught in its mouth. The lines were so long that they sometimes wrapped around its tail.
In the case of the Hanauma turtle, Balazs said it was unlikely the animal got hooked in the popular snorkeling bay, but easily could have run into fishing gear just around the corner toward Hawai'i Kai, where there is a significant fishing presence.
On the lookout
The city's Hanauma Bay manager, Alan Hong, said authorities have been alert for turtles in distress. Green sea turtles are a threatened species protected by federal and state laws.
Bruce Asato • The Honolulu Advertiser
"We had been receiving reports about one or two turtles with hooks in them," Hong said. One of them appeared in the bay on Sunday, and lifeguard Clar-ence Moss was able to bring it to shore for help.
A crowd gathered to watch the release of a 90-pound green sea turtle at Hanauma Bay yesterday.
One of the hooks had a piece of wire leader attached to it, and there was a significant amount of fishing line with the hooks. Balazs said he thought the two hooks might once have been part of the same ulua fishing rig, although the hooks were slightly different in size.
The turtle weighed about 90 pounds, and its shell was about 2 feet long. Balazs estimated it was at least 15 years of age. Other than the hooks and line, the animal appeared healthy, he said.
Unless hooks get into particularly sensitive areas, such as a turtle's throat, they normally will rust away without much further incident, Balazs said. It is the fishing line that creates problems. It can tangle up an animal's flippers and impede swimming. It can hook onto coral heads and trap a turtle. And if a turtle swallows the line, internal injuries can develop.
Improvement noted
While he didn't have detailed figures, Balazs said that gillnet entrapment of turtles appears to be declining statewide, perhaps due to stricter state regulations that limit the length of time gillnets can be in the water. The rules also require that fishers regularly check their gear.
He said that careful observation of the ocean can tell an angler whether there are turtles present. The animals often float at the surface and must come to the surface to breathe on a regular basis.
"It's not a good idea to fish in an area with high turtle usage. If one gets caught, the fisherman loses fishing time and you injure a marine animal you didn't intend to harm," he said.
Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 245-3074.
• • •
• Avoid fishing in areas where turtles are present. Green sea turtles can bite baited hooks, become snagged as they swim by, or get entangled in fishing gear. • If you hook a turtle, try to cut the line as close to the hook as possible so the animal can't get tangled in it. If the turtle is small enough and the hook is not in a vital spot, you can try to remove it. Otherwise, leave it. Turtles have a strong immune system and most hooks will rust away and drop off. • If you find a turtle in trouble, call the sea turtle hot line on O'ahu at 983-5730 or call the local office of the Department of Land and Natural Resources' Division of Conservation and Resource Enforcement hot line number in the phone directory. Source: NOAA Fisheries
Keep turtles safe
