Sea turtle smooth tub found in Trøndelag – taken care of by Norway’s only skeletal conservator – NRK Trøndelag
– This is really one of the worst cases I have encountered. It stinks absolutely awful, says Guus Wellesen.
He is standing in his backyard at Melhus, and in front of him is the carcass of a large sea turtle that drifted ashore on Fjellværøya on Hitra this Easter week.
The turtle lies on its back and is partially parted. Wellesen has already removed his legs and an arm, and cut away the abdominal plate.
The turtle’s back shield thus looks mostly like a bowl full of intestines.
– Right now I am doing the worst part of the cleaning, says Wellesen, who is in the process of cutting away fat from the inside of the shield.
Best with clothespin
Wellesen has 20 years of experience as a skeletal conservator, which means that he is an expert in cleaning and preserving skeletons from various creatures.
He is the only one in all of Norway who has this job, which he holds at NTNU and in his own company, Arctic Skeletons.
Wellesen is by no means a stranger to dissecting and dissecting dead animals, but this turtle is something in itself, he must admit.
– Normally you say that you have to keep your mouth closed, so you do not get anything in your mouth if it squirts. But this time it would have been best with a clothespin on the nose, he says.
– But with such a rare turtle like this, you just have to bite to get the job done.
Endangered species
When the turtle was found, experts disagreed on whether it was a bastard turtle or a slippery carriage.
Now that Wellesen has examined it closely, he also keeps the conclusion: It is a slippery slope.
This is the world’s second largest turtle, and like all other sea turtles it is very endangered.
It lives in warm sea areas, and this specimen has most likely died and moved with the current before the harbor in Trøndelag.
It had no doubt been dead for some time before it was found.
– If I just pinch the liver, it dissolves, Wellesen says.
– It is completely rotten. Do you smell it?
He refers to the wave of belly gas that is released by the small clip. And yes – the smell is noticeable.
Third discovery in Norway
Due to the turtle’s deplorable condition, only the skeleton should be preserved. All soft parts – fat, muscle, organs – are too rotten, so Wellesen is in the process of removing them.
Although he thinks this part of the job is a little extra, Wellesen is aware that it is exciting – it is after all quite unusual to get a turtle on the table.
The find is actually so unique that a small storm of professionals contacted NRK after the first article about the turtle was published – with a desire to take care of it. Wellesen iblant dem.
– This is only the third known finding of smooth tub in Norway, he says.
– Taking tissue samples and taking care of the skeleton is a great way to secure data for the future. We never know how we will research animals and nature in the future, so it is important to take care of what we find.
Same bones as humans
When Wellesen has finished his work, the turtle will have a new home in NTNU’s anatomical collection at the Laboratory Center at St. Olav’s hospital in Trondheim.
Here it will also be part of a so-called comparative collection where you can compare different species.
And in fact, humans and turtles are not as different as you might think. Wellesen brings out the arm he has cut loose from his body.
– See her. You immediately see that they have the same legs as us. Ulna, radius, humerus, the small legs in hand. They are a little different in shape, but the same bone types are there. It’s a little cool!
Clean, degrease and bleach
However, it will take some time before this turtle ends up in the anatomical collection. Wellesen estimates that the entire process can take up to six months.
After this rough cleaning, where the animal is also completely parted, the bones must be massaged – which means that they must be in warm water with added enzymes and bacteria until absolutely all of the soft tissue has rotted away.
Then the bones should be degreased in acetone and bleached in hydrogen peroxide (the same as bleaching hair with, in fact).
Only when this is done is the turtle ready to be reassembled.
Wellesen finds a small land turtle, which is one of the few turtles he has worked with before.
– This is a different art, but this is hopefully the result, he says.
– Clean bones and a shield that holds everything together. But most likely I want to remove all the plates on top, so that there are only bone plates left.
The outer green plates consist of keratin – the same organic material that, among other things, hair and nails are made of.
– On this turtle it is so rotten and disgusting that it is not possible to preserve.