Kemp's Ridley sea turtle. Source: NOAA
Having survived a 4,600 mile trek the across the Atlantic Ocean, a rare, Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle, nicknamed “Johnny Vasco da Gama” will return to familiar waters off the Florida coast today, thanks to an international effort of rescue and diplomacy and a bit of good fortune.
Critically endangered, Kemp’s Ridleys are mostly found in the Gulf of Mexico and don’t migrate across the Atlantic; over the past century, only a handful of successful crossings have been recorded.
Nevertheless, after what scientists estimate to be a year-long journey, a cold and exhausted “Johnny” washed ashore in the Netherlands in November, 2008. Fortunately, rescuers recognized him as an endangered species and took steps to stabilize his condition at the Rotterdam Zoo.
Range of the Kemp's Ridley sea turtle (click to enlarge). Source: NOAA
Young turtles often float along the surface of the Gulf amid mats of brown, algal seaweed known as sargassum, where they find protection from predators and food is generally plentiful.
Scientists suspect that the mat in which “Johnny” was living became caught in a trans-oceanic current known as the North Atlantic gyre.
After rescue, he spent the next three years undergoing rehabilitation in Portugal, first at the Oceanário de Lisboa aquarium and later, the Zoomarine theme park.
Last month, with his health returned and his travel papers in order, the Portuguese airline TAP donated a flight home to Miami, from which he was driven to the Mote Marine Laboratory on Florida’s Gulf Coast.
His release is scheduled for Tuesday, 9:00 AM Eastern time, but thanks to a satellite tracking device, this shouldn’t be the last we hear of the wayfaring Kemp’s Ridley. Within a day or so after his release, the public should be able to follow Johnny’s travels online or subscribe to daily e-mail updates.
First named, “Johnny” in the Netherlands, caregivers in Portugal recognized the intrepid turtle’s accomplishment by adding “Vasco da Gama,” for the Portuguese explorer who opened the sea route from Europe to India.
