APOLLO BEACH, Fla. — A 266-pound loggerhead turtle begins a deep-diving swimming trial at The Florida Aquarium.
The loggerhead turtle named "Jackie" was found stranded nearly 30 years ago and cannot be released into the wild. She has been under human care ever since.
Senior Sea Turtle Biologist Alyssa Fessett with The Florida Aquarium said the turtle arrived at the aquarium's Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Center in Apollo Beach last week.
Biologists are evaluating the turtle to see if she can navigate the depths of an 11-foot deep dive pool.
"She has been able to get to the bottom. She does prefer to stay up in the little loft area, but again it's about 3.5 feet, so that's what she's used to, but we really want to see if we can get her into a forever home that will be deeper than that if possible," said Fessett.
The turtle is missing her front right flipper and has only a partial front left flipper.
The swimming trials will last nearly two weeks. Biologists will evaluate the turtle's ability to swim and eat in the deep-drive pool. At the end of the testing period, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) will review the data and determine where to relocate the turtle.
"We're one of the few in Florida that have the capability of doing deep dive trials. Our habitat is 11 feet deep, and it allows them to utilize a lot deeper ranges than what most facilities can give them. She's been in about four feet of water depth her whole life in humane care," said Fessett. "We really want them to have the most space and the best closest to nature type of habitat possible."
The Florida Aquarium launched its state-of-the-art Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Center in 2019.
In other cases, biologists will evaluate turtles and their ability to dive in deep water before determining if they may be released back into the wild.
All sea turtle rehabilitation work conducted by The Florida Aquarium is done with the approval of the FWC under conditions not harmful to marine turtles and authorized under conservation activities pursuant to FWC MTP-23-179.
