WAIMANALO, Hawaii (Island News) — Humans undergo surgery every day but now, one of Hawaii’s endangered sea turtles is getting the same chance at survival.
For the first time ever, a life-saving surgical procedure was performed at the Hawaiʻi Marine Animal Response (HMAR) Care Center on Oʻahu.
The patient, a juvenile green sea turtle known as OA195, was found with severe fishing line entanglement around its front flipper. Despite weeks of care, the limb continued to deteriorate.
“The flipper just kind of started to declare itself unusable,” Animal Care Manager Taylor Prostor. “Amputation was going to be the best thing for the turtle in this case.”
Thanks to new equipment, including an anesthesia machine funded by Dr. Tungs, and support from NOAA and Hawaii Pacific University, the team successfully removed the damaged flipper.
Just one day later, OA195 was swimming strong.
“He’s maneuvering around great in the tank without that flipper,” Prostor added.
The surgery marks a milestone for the new Waimānalo-based center, which opened in Oct. 2023 to treat injured Honu without flying them off-island.
With 75% of sea turtle strandings in Hawaii happening on Oʻahu, the procedure could signal a major breakthrough in timely, local wildlife care.
The team hopes this is just the beginning, and reminds the public to help protect sea turtles by keeping beaches and waters clear of trash and fishing line.
If you see a sea turtle in distress, call the NOAA marine wildlife hotline at 888-256-9840.
HMAR: Sea turtles activity conducted pursuant to 50CFR222.310,223.206,17.21,17.31, SAP 2025-49, ES71614D
