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Meet Porkchop, the Aquarium of the Pacific's rescued green sea turtle
Porkchop the green sea turtle had to have her right flipper amputated after being rescued by aquarium staff from a tangle of fishing line in the San Gabriel River.
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Aquarium of the Pacific expands conservation efforts
Also meet the Long Beach aquarium's new CEO, who says the aquarium is expanding conservation efforts, including with sea turtles and zebra sharks.
The Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach isn’t just a major attraction for tourists and locals alike — it’s also a sea turtle rescue, endangered shark breeder, a frog nursery and more.
The aquarium has long supported conservation efforts across the Pacific Ocean, and now those efforts are expanding.
“There are international conservation efforts all around the world that would benefit from the knowledge and expertise of the professionals at the aquarium,” said new Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Flocken . “So we're going to be learning in both directions, taking what we learn from other groups, but also trying to bring the knowledge that we've already built here.”
Flocken, who is trained as a lawyer and previously served as president of Humane Society International, succeeds Dr. Peter Kareiva, who had a five-year contract starting in 2020 and left his post at the aquarium to pursue science and conservation advocacy work.
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Reporters this week got a behind-the-scenes look at the aquarium’s growing sea turtle rescue efforts and a new partnership to boost populations of the endangered Indo-Pacific zebra shark.
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Rescuing green sea turtles
The San Gabriel River has become home to a population of green sea turtles — the creatures have made a remarkable comeback after once being on the brink of extinction.
But living in one of most urbanized rivers in the world has its risks. Earlier this year, aquarium staff rescued a young turtle entangled in fishing lines, caught on debris, and on the brink of death. The turtle was found by volunteers participating in the aquarium’s Southern California Sea Turtle Monitoring community science program .
Aquarist Stacy Hammond with Porkchop, who is having a breakfast of romaine lettuce.
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One of the turtle’s front flippers was tangled in fishing lines and stuck in debris. The line cut off the blood to one of her front flippers, so staff eventually had to amputate it. A fishing hook was lodged in the back of her neck.
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Now, the sea turtle has gotten a second chance at life — and having just three flippers doesn’t seem to be hindering her. (Experts aren’t entirely certain of the turtle’s sex, but guess she is female given the smaller size of her tail.)
“It has not seemed to faze her at all. She navigates great,” said senior aquarist Stacy Hammond. “She ate right away, which is uncommon for our rescue sea turtles. She eats very well.”
Aquarium staff say Porkchop is recovering well and will soon be released back into the wild.
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Erin Stone
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It’s why staff nicknamed her Porkchop. They expect to be able to release her back into the wild before the end of the year. She’s one of four the aquarium has rescued this year.
The aquarium has rescued and rehabilitated a variety of sea turtles since 2000 , all of which found in U.S. waters are either endangered or threatened species. Now they’re expanding that work by building an expanded enclosure with specialty equipment and medical supplies.
Saving endangered zebra sharks
Fern, a female zebra shark who is helping to repopulate her endangered kin in Southeast Asia.
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A baby male zebra shark will go to another aquarium to help breed the species.
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Erin Stone
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Visitors can see the ultrasounds of zebra shark eggs. This image shows the mouth of a zebra shark developing.
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Erin Stone
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Veterinarian Brittany Stevens conducts an ultrasound on a zebra shark egg.
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Erin Stone
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LAist
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The aquarium’s expanded conservation work also includes joining a global effort to recover populations of the endangered zebra shark in Indonesia, where overfishing and habitat degradation has decimated the population.
The aquarium is home to a zebra shark named Fern , who has the necessary genetics from that region. Her viable eggs will be flown first to the Seattle Aquarium, which will prepare them for transport to Indonesia. Then, when the shark embryos hatch and mature, they’ll be released into a marine protected area off the coasts of the Raja Ampat archipelago to help recover the species’ population there.
“We had one of the first successful artificial inseminations with the zebra shark here at the aquarium, and that becomes important as a potential means of managing genetics across populations,” said Nate Jaros, the aquarium’s vice president of animal care. “So this is all part of rebuilding that population.”
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But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
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