Turtle rescued at Umkomaas beach
When Da Fonseca arrived at the beach, Strydom and two other women who initially found the turtle, were keeping a close eye on it making sure no one interfered with it.
Snakes aren’t the only creatures well-known snake catcher Miguel da Fonseca rescues from local communities. Da Fonseca received a call from his friend and fellow snake catcher Donald Strydom last Wednesday (15th) informing him of a sickly green sea turtle which had washed up on the Umkomaas beach.
With no hesitation, he made his way down to the beach with his wife Micaela, to see how he could help the distressed animal, and on the way there contacted members of the South African Association for Marine Biological Research (Saambr) to intervene.
Saambr is a non-government, non-profit company and public benefit organisation which in 2004 became the cornerstone of uShaka Marine World in Durban, and since its establishment, has contributed towards the conservation of marine and coastal resources in the western Indian Ocean.
When Da Fonseca arrived at the beach, Strydom and two other women who initially found the turtle, were keeping a close eye on it making sure no one interfered with it.
“The turtle was very lethargic and we could see it battling to breathe. It was actually a very sad thing to see,” said Da Fonseca.
He and the team at the beach gently picked up the turtle and carried it to the vehicle of the original person who found the creature and made the call for help.
The caller then offered to transport it to uShaka’s Saambr. Once the turtle arrived at uShaka for rehabilitation, it was was named Allie (Aliwal).
Da Fonseca said he had been informed that Allie was doing well and looking strong. He said that he had been told that, fortunately, the turtle had no plastic or fishhooks inside her and was now eating well and on the road to recovery.
Earlier in July this year, a juvenile African penguin was also rescued from mid-South Coast waters thanks to local divers and sent to Saambr where it was well-looked after and quickly made a full recovery through successful rehabilitation.
Da Fonseca said that he was grateful to have been of assistance in this situation and requests members of local communities to contact him, not just for snake removals, but to assist with any other animals in distress such as this one. He can be contacted on 072 6123218.
An update on the turtle will be provided once information is received directly from Saambr.
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