Imaging-guided clinical approach to fishing line ingestion in a juvenile green sea turtle Chelonia mydas from southern Brazil.

OBJECTIVE

This study presents a juvenile green sea turtle Chelonia mydas case of fishing line ingestion during artisanal fishing monitoring, highlighting the importance of imaging and complementary diagnostics in detecting clinical alterations and managing marine debris-related injuries.

METHODS

During artisanal fishing monitoring in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, a juvenile green sea turtle with a protruding fishing line was captured. Clinical evaluation included physical examination, ultrasonography, radiography, and hematological-biochemical analyses (e.g., red blood cell count, hemoglobin, white blood cell count, urea).

RESULTS

Radiography and ultrasonography revealed a fishing line extending consecutively through the oral cavity, esophagus, and stomach without associated hooks, enabling manual line removal. Hematological findings indicated systemic responses to gastrointestinal trauma-regenerative macrocytic anemia (red blood cell count = 0.18 × 10⁶/µL; hemoglobin = 8.3 g/dL; hematocrit = 25%; mean corpuscular volume = 1,388 fL), leukocytosis (white blood cell count = 10,600 cells/µL), and elevated urea (232.59 mg/dL), suggesting dehydration and catabolic stress. Coelomic fluid accumulation indicated localized inflammation, though intestinal motility remained intact. Successful manual extraction avoided surgical intervention.

CONCLUSIONS

This case underscores the role of diagnostic tools (imaging, hematology) in assessing debris-related health impacts in aquatic species. The findings align with broader evidence of fishing gear as a pervasive stressor in marine ecosystems, contributing to anemia, metabolic dysregulation, and inflammatory sequelae. This work emphasizes the need to integrate clinical diagnostics into fisheries management and expand health-monitoring protocols to address anthropogenic threats across aquatic taxa.