Turtle recovering after being taken out of water for selfies
Digital Reporter
Thursday, June 23, 2016, 6:00 PM - A loggerhead turtle is recovering after people at Havana Beach in Beirut, Lebanon dragged it out of the water to take selfies with it earlier this month.
According to witnesses beach-goers pulled the large turtle out of the sea and threw it onto shore.
Local conservation group Green Area captured photos of the troubling scene, which show people posing alongside the distressed turtle. One person even helped a child stand on top of it.
Jason Mier, executive director of Animals Lebanon, told The Dodo a witness claimed a child hit the turtle on the head with a stick.
"We were not present when the turtle came to shore and have to rely on pictures and accounts of people who were present," Mier told the news agency. "Luckily, other people were there who did care and stopped this and helped get the turtle to a safe area."
Photo courtesy of Green Area.
Animals Lebanon was contacted after the incident. It is covering the cost of veterinary and rehabilitation care.
"The turtle has a very evident spot on his skull, the very top of his head, where he has been hit," Mier told The Dodo, adding that while the head injury may have occurred prior to the beach incident, two veterinarians concluded the injury came from a recent strike.
"All that can be done is to give the antibiotics to help fight off any possible infection while it [the wound] is still new and [has] time to heal," Meir said.
Loggerhead turtles are an endangered species protected by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
Sources: The Dodo | Green Area
VIDEO: ONE TRICK HELPING THE SEA TURTLE POPULATION:
