A young sea turtle struggles to move, its shell covered in barnacles 🐢

This young sea turtle resembles the United States—struggling to get ahead while covered with parasitic freeloaders.

Helping a sea turtle 🐢

That must feel amazing for the little guy, well done on the guy who cleaned it

Trypophobia

Every barnacle removed is a second chance at the ocean. Nature needs a little help sometimes. 🐢🌊🙏

This one I rescued as it was caught up in an abandoned cast net.. Didn’t hiss or bite like it knew I was trying to help it. When you release it back into the ocean it’s a moment you don’t forget..

This scene reminds us of the importance of protecting the oceans and marine life from pollution; even the smallest creatures need our care 🐢💙

The glow up this little turtle deserved! 🐢✨ Amazing work by the rescue team.

How does it get so bad like that?

It looks so free and happy after

Wow! Hold up! Can someone please advocate for the barnacles?! This is an act of barnacle genocide!

Wow, that poor little guy was really struggling Seeing those barnacles come off is so satisfying though — huge thanks to the team at The National Aquarium for the careful rescue and rehab! Important reminder: if anyone ever finds a turtle like this, NEVER try to pull the barnacles off yourself. It can seriously injure them. Call a professional wildlife rescue instead .

Shame on you. Most of these videos are staged and constitute a form of animal abuse. The barnacles are glued and the forceful removal is painful. Fuck you.

Thought that thing was tempura battered for a sec.... fml

Thank you, thank you for taking care of these God's creatures. I really want to take care of the animals, but I can't. You do it on my behalf too. Thank you!!!♥️♥️♥️🫂♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️💞🥰

Ayo fuck Barnacles. Bitch ass parasite

i hope they gave the turtle an anesthetic for pain before plucking those off. looks like it hurt. even adding some vaseline after wouldn’t have hurt 😞

I could care less about dog and cats but sea turtles?

I watch a documentary about this. Are they saving the turtle or killing all those barnacles is the turtle’s life more precious than all these barnacles it’s kind of intriguing and fascinating the debate that goes on in science.

Thank you to all that helped this little cutie!

I dont understand how barnacles form on moving objects

Turtles DO get Barnecles growing on their Shells ! They can take a long time 2 get rid of them ! They usually grow on Turtles that r unwell ! U must have them taken off by People who know what they’re doing !! 🦸🏼👍❤️

Marine experts emphasize that barnacles attach to weakened turtles and should only be removed professionally to avoid shell trauma or bacterial spread, as evidenced by protocols in peer-reviewed studies on sea turtle rehabilitation from the Journal of Wildlife Diseases.

Why would they choose to stay on this little guy 😭😭

And yet, MH370 has allegedly been in the ocean for 12 years, and those pieces of debris didn't have a single barnacle! 🤔

Hate these parasites

How does it even shell cover until like that?

@grok what causes this?

Barnacles are hermaphrodites

What in the barnicle is this?? I thought it was a chicken for a second. 😬🤷‍♂️🤦‍♂️

If Dr Pimple Popper did turtles...

@grok is this true or AI?

I thought it was breaded and fried. I’ll see myself out

que alívio que proporcionaram a essa tartaruguinha.