Endangered 160-pound sea turtle released in California

A green sea turtle is now back in the ocean. The 160 pound animal was freed at Seal Beach in California.

It spent the past month at the Aquarium of the Pacific after getting a fish hook lodged in its stomach.

Veterinarians performed surgery to remove the hook. The turtle then spent the next few weeks regaining its strength before being released.

The aquarium says it’s rescued several sea turtles over the past few years. Aquarium of the Pacific Staff Veterinarian Lance Adams says, “It’s really a great chance for us to take some of those animals that may have had problems or interactions with humans and had an impact on them and be able to reverse that and have that animal be healthy and go back out to the environment and be able to continue on with its life so that makes us feel really good inside.”

The aquarium fits some turtles with a satellite tracking device to gather data on migration patterns.