Have you ever seen an albino turtle? A rare albino turtle swims at the Sea Turtle Reserve Centre in Kosgoda, Sri Lanka. The centre collects turtle eggs from the beaches for hatching before poachers remove them as they are considered a delicacy. Once hatched the small turtles are let free in the sea.

Albinos often struggle to survive in the wild, as their lack of pigment makes them an easy target for predators.

Sea Turtles Project

The sea turtles project is one of the turtle hatcheries located along the southern coast, this hatchery is located 3 Km south of the Bentota bridge. These turtle hatcheries were constructed to rescue and protect turtle eggs because of the rapidly declining numbers of marine turtle in Sri Lankan shores.

Marine turtle eggs are purchased from the fisherman and re-buried along the beach and left there for 48 days allowing the eggs ample time to hatch. Thereafter the baby turtles are collected from the beach and kept in tanks for 2-3 days, and released into the ocean to fend off for themselves. The few female turtles that survive will return to their natal shores after ten years to lay their own eggs.

Visitors to the hatchery could release baby turtles into the ocean at night; they could also take a glimpse at the two very rare albino turtles that are kept at the sea turtle project for research. This one of a kind sea turtle conservation project is a site that should not be missed when one visits Bentota.

Here he is! He was captured in a fisherman's net and if he had not been an albino would have been eaten. But he was brought to the folks at Kosgoda. He lives in his own holding pond. He has been there for many years. When the tsunami hit, the director ran out to the pond, grabbed him, and ran to safety. There are two of them at Kosgoda.

Firefighters with the Medina Fire Department used special oxygen masks to rescue turtles that were pulled from a shed fire.

Wednesday afternoon, crews responded to a shed fire. When they arrived on the scene, they were told by neighbors that the owner had multiple turtles inside the shed.

Crews put out the fire and began removing about 10 turtles, including two large tortoises, from the smoke-filled shed.

The Medina Fire Department carries oxygen masks that are specially designed to be used on animals and crews used those to administer oxygen to the turtles.

The fire department said about half of the turtles were able to be rescued.

According to the fire department, the shed was insulated and heated to house the turtles and it is believed that one of the heating elements started the fire.

Photos Source Medina Fire Dept

"This afternoon the duty crew was dispatched to a report of smoke showing from a possible shed fire. Upon arrival we confirmed that it was a working fire and were quickly informed by the neighbors that the owner had multiple turtles inside. The crew put the fire out and began removing approximately 10 turtles which included two large tortoises from the smoke filled shed. MFD carries oxygen masks that are specially designed to be used on animals and we used it to administer oxygen therapy. Unfortunately about half of the turtles didnt make it. The shed had been insulated and heated to house the turtles and it is believed that one of the heating elements started the fire." Medina Fire Dept

Source Turtles are easily recognised by their bony, cartilaginous shell. This super-tough casing acts like a shield to protect them from predators – some turtles can even tuck their head up inside their shell for extra protection! Contrary to popular belief, a turtle cannot come out of its shell. The turtle’s shell grows with them, so it’s impossible for them to grow too big for it!

Professional marine artist Carey Chen, 52, spotted the sea creature struggling inside the yellow basket whilst completing in a charity fishing tournament at Casa Vieja Lodge in Guatemala earlier this month.

In her footage, friends Danilo Carmeno and Ridge Murphy can be seen freeing the animal from the basket.

Carey said: “I saw the yellow basket in the distance which was moving, so I told the captain to turn back.

“As we got closer, I could see a turtle trapped in the basket.”

The plastic can impact Carey’s work, which as a result makes the lodge a more appealing place to complete projects she has.

Carey explained she sees more and more plastic in the ocean – while Casa Vieja promotes a no-plastic bottle rule, as instead they have visitors fill up thermos’ before heading out to fish.


Carey added: “I spent a lot of time in the water, their rule saves around eighty thousand bottles a year.”

Hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, whales, and other marine mammals, and more than 1 million seabirds die each year from ocean pollution and ingestion or entanglement in marine debris. Marine debris is manmade waste that is directly or indirectly disposed of in oceans, rivers, and other waterways.

Most trash reaches the seas via rivers, and 80% originates from landfills and other urban sources. This waste, which is also consumed by fish and can entangle sharks and damage coral reefs, tends to accumulate in gyres (areas of slow spiraling water and low winds) and along coastlines.

Small fish, turtles and other amphibians are being sold in Beijing as mobile phone trinkets and key rings, to the chagrin of animal rights groups.

Kept in bags filled with colored, oxygenated water the animals cost around $1.50 each.

One vendor selling the animals outside of a Beijing subway station told CNN that the bag contained crystallized oxygen and nutrients.

She said that that the animals could live for days but also warned that they should be freed from the bag as soon as the air ran out or they would suffocate.

Among the animals being sold are young Chinese soft-shell turtles - the adult turtles are a popular dish in Chinese cooking.

The live trinkets have been condemned by animal rights groups who have highlighted the lack of animal protection laws in China.


"Lack of food and diminishing oxygen concentrations within both the water and the small amount of air in these plastic pouches will cause the animals to die in a relatively short period of time after the pouches are sealed," said David Neale, animal welfare director of Animals Asia.

"If a national animal protection law was enacted in China, such acts of cruelty could be prevented, and those who persist in causing harm and suffering to animals within their care could be prosecuted."


No matter how you look at it, the practice of forcing live animals into keychains is simply cruel. Unfortunately, in China there are no animal welfare laws preventing this outrageous treatment of living creatures. These animals are subjected to a slow death by suffocation in a watery grave.

Sign now to send a message to Cui Tiankai, Chinese Ambassador to the United States, urging him to help put a stop to this atrocious practice. Let the government of China know that this treatment of living, sentient beings will not stand with the rest of the world.

Bringing home a pet turtle can also be a very rewarding experience. However, as with any other pets, it is necessary to consider a lot of things before buying the animal. The needs of turtles are completely different from any other kind of pets. Ignoring the same can cost their health and lives. It’s a serious commitment and no one wants our loved animals to meet a premature death. Some of the first things to understand include:

* The initial expense to buy a pet turtle is pretty cheap but you will need to seriously and regularly invest in providing the right kind of housing, bedding, terrain, food and veterinary care.

* The life of a turtle can extend to more than 25 years, depending on the species you go for. Well, you should also need to be able to care for the animal for that long.

* Turtles are highly sensitive to their environment and will constantly require a clean, well lit and warm habitat. This needs a dedicated amount of time spent on the upkeep every day.

* Turtles require daily care and cannot be left alone if you are planning on long trips. You should be able to arrange for something or someone in these situations, which will eventually come up.

* Turtles need hibernating and this requirement is quite different from other kinds of pets

* Lastly, to remain healthy, turtles will need a daily supply of fresh food – fruits, vegetables, insects and fish. You should be ready for this.

Not so cool facts about turtles as pets:

1.  Having a terrarium habitat with a couple of animals flourishing in it can be a rewarding experience. However, do understand that turtles don’t necessarily interact with their keepers. They might develop behavioral regularity they, won’t particularly interact like dogs or cats do.

2. Secondly, turtles always come across as an interesting pet initially, however, with time; they seem to lose their charm. This is especially true since the reptiles are demanding but will not be interestingly responsive.

All that said, you certainly do get to learn a lot about the animals and seeing your pet flourish is itself a positive activity.

Now that you know the advantages and limitations of having a turtle as a pet, it’s important to choose the right kind of species. Each species of turtle require different kinds of nutrition, housing, husbandry and veterinary care. It will be advisable to spend some time reading up about the kinds of turtles that you can keep and would be easily available. It will also be important to contact a vet who would be available in the neighborhood and also suggest you about the necessary setup.

Choosing the right species is as important as your decision about where you choose to buy the animal from. There’s a difference in captive bread and wild-caught animals, even in the same species. It is necessary that you know where it came from. Lastly, and more importantly, you should get attuned to the accessories that are necessary to setup or maintain a terrarium. Check out https://aquaticturtles.net/reviews/aquatic-turtle-filters.html for all information on turtle accessories. 

Marine biologists couldn't contain their excitement when they discovered the world's first glowing sea turtle.

 In a video shared by National Geographic on Monday, scientist David Gruber is diving at night near a coral reef in the Solomon Islands when he spots something absolutely magical — a glowing hawksbill sea turtle swimming right in front of his cameras.

"We found a biofluorescent turtle!" one of the scientists calls out from the water. "The first I've ever seen of a biofluorescent turtle," Gruber says, totally amazed. "Spectacular."

That sighting was a historic moment — the first known glimpse of a biofluorescent sea turtle. Biofluorescent means that the turtle's body reflects light from the water and reemits it as a different color — in this case, neon yellow, red and green.


Biofluorescence has never been recorded in a marine reptile before. Gruber and his team were in the Solomon Islands to find examples of biofluorescence in coral or sharks, but they never expected to find a glowing hawksbill sea turtle.


"It came in front of my lens and then hung out with us," Gruber says in the video. "I wanted to let him go after a little bit. I felt like he came and he divulged his secret."


Now that marine biologists know that turtles are capable of this magic-seeming biofluorescence, the next step is to figure out why they're glowing: Is it for camouflage? Or to communicate with other turtles?