Last July, the crew of the Octopus Foundation spent ten days at the Lampedusa Turtle Rescue center. An important event now attracts the team once again: Daniela Freggi and her volunteers will soon set its most famous Caretta Caretta turtle free. “Homerus” has been living at the clinic for the past eight years, undergoing a serious rehabilitation after seeing its two back legs paralyzed in a terrible accident with a boat on the surface of the Mediterranean Sea.
With the help of the Octopus Foundation, the Lampedusa turtle center was able to purchase a GPS beacon that will be glued to Homerus’ back. This will allow the scientists to follow the first weeks or months of the turtle’s journey back to total freedom.
For Daniela Freggi, the center’s director, the anticipation is gripping. “We are nervous and happy at the same time. We still don’t know how long Homerus will let us follow her destiny in her natural habitat, but we know it’s the best thing that could happen to her”, says the French-Italian biologist.
For the Octopus Foundation, it’s an important project that will contribute to a better understanding of these threatened marine turtles, and also because “it raises the public’s awareness on the crucial role that these animal play in the complex marine ecosystem and on the challenges that they face in this day and age”, explains Julien Pfyffer, president and founder of the Octopus Foundation.
For the Italian team, the partnership with the Octopus Foundation is first of all a human adventure. “Their passion for the marine world is contagious, and it can be felt in our collaboration. We are grateful and proud to be sharing this precious moment with the foundation’s team”, concludes Daniela Freggi.
©P.Henry