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With a slight departure from the scheduled time, just after noon on Thursday, two rescued loggerhead turtles - named Paloma and Gloria - finally returned to open waters - their natural habitat - after being cared for by the Junta de Andalucía. This was made possible through the cooperation of the regional government's centre for marine environment management and two companies: Selwo Marina in Benalmádena and Seashore in Tarifa.
The event generated a great deal of interest among locals and tourists alike at the Playamar beach in Torremolinos, where the animals were released back into the sea.
The first to be helped back to the Mediterranean was Gloria, hoisted from her crate, in which she was kept hydrated. Torremolinos mayor Margarita del Cid and delegate for the environment and sustainability José Antonio Vízquez did the honours. At first, the animal seemed unsure - contact with the sand did not encourage her and it was not until the third attempt that she started to swim, with the help of her veterinarian, Marta Román.
Gloria had spent months undergoing treatment, after being picked up near the La Atunara , in La Línea fishing port. She had been suffering from a buoyancy issue that prevented her from feeding herself and, therefore, put her life at risk. Although the causes of this ailment are not clear, Román, who has been caring for her day and night, believes that it may be the result of an incident with human involvement.
Meanwhile, Paloma was faster in regaining her natural way of life. She was saved from almost certain death, after she was found in a bad state in Palomares, in Andalucía's Almeria province. During her treatment, she gained almost four kilos, mostly muscle mass, thanks to the care of the Selwo Marina team and their director Alberto Martín. Paloma couldn't wait any longer to get back into the water, flapping to warm up while she was still on the land. She swam like a torpedo.
It was the first time Torremolinos had witnessed such an event and beachgoers at the Costa Lago beach were delighted to witness the release. Vízquez expressed his hope that such actions will not be necessary and that turtles will not suffer and more problems due to human activity. He warned against people throwing plastic into the sea, as this material can be ingested by the fauna that inhabit the waters.
The Torremolinos town mayor thanked everybody who made the rescue possible, hoping that Paloma and Gloria "will never leave their environment again and will live a long and happy life".
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