BREVARD COUTNY, Fla. — The Brevard County Zoo will release a juvenile green sea turtle named Banana on Tuesday, May 2, after an intense 14-month stay at the zoo’s sea turtle healing center.
Banana was found floating in the Indian River Lagoon near the Main Street Boat Ramp in Sebastian in March 2022. Zoo officials said the sea turtle was extremely thin and covered in organisms, including leeches and fibropapilomatosis (FP) tumors.
)
(Brevard County Zoo)
According to the zoo, FP is a virus that causes external and internal tumors to grow all over a turtle’s body. Depending on their location and size, these tumors can affect organs, impede a sea turtle’s ability to swim, and lower their ability to fight off parasites.
Zoo veterinarians said Banana had a golf ball-sized tumor covering his left eye and numerous tumors on the outside of his body.
)
(Brevard County Zoo)
The Healing Center brought in Orlando-based veterinary ophthalmologist Dr. Matthew Fife to help remove the tumor over Banana’s eye. Because of other medical issues, Dr. Fife had to remove Banana’s eye altogether. However, officials said that would not affect him in the wild.
“Sea turtles can live a long, normal life with one eye, and this does not stop them from being releasable,” Jess Patterson, Healing Center coordinator and veterinary nurse, said.
It several surgeries to remove the tumors on the outside of the sea turtle and many months to nurse Banana back out of anemia after each surgery.
The veterinary team used an innovative treatment called electrochemotherapy to remove Banana’s last tumor area. This treatment uses an electroporator to deliver electrotherapy into tumors, making them more permeable and better able to absorb chemotherapy, the zoo reported.
“Electrochemotherapy worked wonderfully for Banana,” Patterson said. “After a couple treatments, Banana’s tumors started to regress and even fall off.”
Banana will be released back into the wild at Hightower Beach Park in Satellite Beach tomorrow.
Named after National Banana Day and in honor of the minions from the movie Despicable Me, Banana will leave the Healing Center with a variety of nicknames including Banana Nut, Nanners, and Nan.