Hypothermic turtle once near death warmed and freed off the West Coast
VANCOUVER — The sea turtle believed to be the first ever successfully rehabilitated in Canada is now swimming, free and healthy, in the warm waters off San Diego, Calif.
The Pacific green turtle nicknamed Comber was found on a remote Vancouver Island beach in January.
When officials from the Vancouver Aquarium stepped in, Comber had such severe hypothermia that it was difficult to tell if the reptile was alive.
The aquarium’s Marine Mammal Rescue Centre slowly warmed the turtle, that needed three months of rehabilitation before being transferred to Seattle and then on to San Diego.