Officers rescue injured Olive ridley sea turtle stranded on beach in Thailand

Wildlife officers rescued an injured olive ridley sea turtle stranded on a beach in Thailand.

The 30-inch female, which was in the middle of its nesting season, was found by coastal residents being thrashed by waves off Koh Lanta island in Krabi province, on September 15.

The turtle slammed into rocks and was unable to swim back into the open sea, prompting them to drag it to the shore.

Phanpong Kongkaew, chief of the Mu Koh Lanta National Park, said villagers notified him about the wounded turtle. He then called the Marine and Coastal Resources Research Center (Lower Andaman Sea) to examine the marine animal's condition.

Officials arrived the next morning, September 16, and found that the turtle had minor wounds from hitting the jagged rocks at the beach. They tried to usher it back into the sea, but it refused to paddle in the water.

The turtle was taken to the Marine and Coastal Resources Research Center (Lower Andaman Sea) for treatment and rehabilitation.

The olive ridley sea turtle is a small oceanic turtle known for its olive-green shell. It is found primarily in tropical and subtropical oceans and is notable for its mass nesting events, called arribadas, where thousands of females come ashore simultaneously to lay their eggs.

The nesting season typically lasts from June to December, during which the turtles use the wind and tide to help them reach their nesting sites.

They are classified as vulnerable in the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List due to habitat loss, poaching, and accidental capture in fishing gear.

Thailand and neighbouring countries in Southeast Asia are in their annual monsoon rainy season which sees soaring temperatures followed by powerful rain storms in the afternoon leading to widespread flash floods.