Turtle upon admission.

7/14 An endangered Kemp's ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys kempii) has been brought to Mote Marine Laboratory's Sea Turtle Hospital after it swallowed a balloon. The 3.3-pound young turtle with a carapace 8.7 inches long washed up on a sandbar near the south end of Lido Key on Tuesday, July 14, with what appeared to be fishing line hanging from its mouth.
Before removing the pink line, radiographs (X-rays) were use to verify that the turtle had not swallowed a fishing hook. Instead, remnants of a balloon were found. Mote's new Kemp's ridley patient, nicknamed Anakin, is receiving fluids, antibiotics and food at the Sea Turtle Hospital. The turtle, which arrived anemic and dehydrated, is being closely monitored for any additional health problems. 9/2 Anakin has been eating well and is gaining weight — a great sign after we removed the balloon. Additional radiographs have shown a fracture in the turtle's right-front flipper, but no complications from the balloon. Otherwise, Anakin is stable and off antiobiotics and appears to be a good candidate for future release. 10/20 Recent radiographs turned up a broken flipper, which appears to be healing. We're still evaluating Anakin's blood values for release, but he's still a great contender. 11/30 Turtle continues to improve. Eating well and flipper is healing nicely. 3/8 After months of treatment, turtle's blood values improved and turtle grew in both length and weight and turtle was released. The release was "extra special" as Anakin was released alongside a green sea turtle and a loggerhead sea turtle — a pretty rare event.