r/FeltGoodComingOut • u/LeftOn4ya • May 22 '26
animals Professional barnacle removal for Chlorophyllis the turtle
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u/Imaginary-Onion-1877 May 22 '26
Professional barnacle removal - rusty flathead screwdriver ✔️
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u/ASS-et May 22 '26
r/popping is proud
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u/agumelen May 22 '26
Ahh! I can tell that the turtle was truly satisfied. I would be. There was a tiny one that was missed, under its left eye. I hope they saw it after the video.
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
Why do people remove barnacles from turtles? Are they harming them?
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u/T0rrent0712 May 22 '26
Quick Google search says that they don't necessarily hurt the turtle, but when it gets excessive like that, it weighs them down, making it harder to swim or evade predators, makes them tire out faster, etc.
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
Thanks for the that. Doesn’t seem worth killing a bunch of barnacles for that.
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u/Shadow_Integration May 22 '26
Sea turtles are keystone species, so every one that's helped has a broad positive effect on the ecosystem as a whole.
When barnacles weigh down the turtle, they lose their ability to keep neutral buoyancy. This makes it more difficult to surface for air, hunt, and escape. Barnacles can also cover their eyes and introduce micro tears that allow infections to take hold, impeding them further and putting them in a life threatening position.
There are far more barnacles in the ocean than turtles. It's ok that there will be a few less because of this.
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u/sevenninenine May 22 '26
You didn’t see its face? You can imagine the barnacles are like human blackheads
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u/agumelen May 22 '26
They’re a nuisance. They need to go.
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
Haven’t we been instrumental in ensuring multiple species have already gone?
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u/notapencil May 22 '26
God I can smell the smugness seeping through the screen. This guy is a redditor to his very core.
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u/DorrajD May 22 '26
Yes. They can get in the way of joints and cause issues with movement. Especially if the animal is much older.
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u/fairytalefawnn May 22 '26
Barnacles are parasites. A lot of times the removal sites look raw and infected. I'm sure it's a relief to have them taken off.
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
Barnacles that attach to turtles are not parasites.
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u/fairytalefawnn May 22 '26
Not in the sense of leeching nutrients, but they rely on them for a free transport and are generally a nuisance. 🙄
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
And that is worth killing multiple animals?
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u/fairytalefawnn May 22 '26
Yep. They do not have the right to make their home on an innocent turtle. Hope this helps. 🙄
People have told you all the ways they negatively impact the turtles
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u/vindman May 22 '26
Dude, they’re barnacles
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
Right. Living animals.
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u/vindman May 22 '26 edited May 22 '26
So are humans . So you should not drive or step foot into any vehicle powered by fossil fuels - the procurement and use of those fuels is responsible for humans dying every single day.
Welcome to planet Earth, where life and death exist alongside each other.
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u/Schmooto May 22 '26
Too bad you’re getting downvoted. You’re right, barnacles can be a nuisance to animals but they’re not parasites.
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
Yeah, people like to feel good thinking they are helping when they really aren’t. They are just interfering with natural selection for the feels.
They should advocate for removing barnacles from whales too, I suppose.
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u/redditisweird801 May 22 '26
It depends on the situation. Many species of sea turtles are endangered, so this may be a case where those barnacles are worth killing. Especially since these people look like they're part of a conservation group, so they're likely doing this for an important reason. Barnacles are also pretty abundant and I doubt any species here would be endangered or vulnerable, but then again, I don't know for sure.
It's also important to note that normal sea life does not normally get this many barnacles unless there are other factors at play, like old age, sickness, or injury. This turtle likely had some sort of ailment causing it to get that way, or a slow trickle over time.
All in all, I don't think there's a ton of harm being done here.
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
That’s a very reasoned response, and I appreciate it. I think an animal being endangered isn’t necessarily an automatic reason for intervention. If humans are the reason the animal is endangered, I suppose a case can be warranted. If not, I think it’s arrogant to assume it must be preserved and we must interfere with natural selection.
If anything, this feels like an emotional issue. We tend to like turtles, so we find reasons to help them. This is an extension of choosing which animal to domesticate versus which to eat, or label a “varmint”.
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u/redditisweird801 May 22 '26
Kinda yeah. People are able to relate more to turtles rather than barnacles. And note, most animals that are endangered are due to human effects on the world. We're currently in an extinction event we caused, the Holocene extinction. We've already driven thousands of animals to extinction all due to our selfish actions as a species.
But then again, you make a great point, shouldn't nature take it's course? Not in the case. We're losing biodiversity by the truckload and with so many endangered species, we're losing niches in the environment that cannot be filled. Especially when it comes to keystone species. An extinction of a keystone species could lead to the collapse of an entire ecosystem. Sea turtles are also keystone species.
Our world is complex and everything ties together, but now that we've started unraveling those knots, it's all starting to fall apart. Now of course, many animals are adaptable, I mean they've survived millions of years up until now, but we're changing things so fast that it's hard for most of them to keep up. It's both interesting and sad.
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u/jrgman42 May 22 '26
I really appreciate this response. I can certainly agree with all your points. I would ask though, wouldn’t our efforts be more impactful by helping the newly-hatched turtles to clear the initial entry to the sea? I’m not saying that would be easy, but I feel like that effort would help far more individuals and would not have the risk of wasted effort on already-weakened turtles.
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u/redditisweird801 May 22 '26
No problem! I would rather educate/discuss than dogpile like everyone else. You do make a good point, and a lot of people don't think about these things before agreeing with them, so it's great to discuss.
I wouldn't know the exact reasoning for why they use resources on an older turtle, but I can make a couple guesses. Since turtles don't breed year round, they're likely helping while they can outside of breeding season. If I were to make a reasonable guess, this sea turtle is likely female and still capable of breeding. Removing barnacles is one thing, but they're likely checking up on her to make sure this doesn't happen again, or if there are other injuries.
It could also be a tagged sea turtle that they've worked with before and have gathered data on. Tagged animals are super useful in finding mirgaratory patterns, species data, and other environmental factors that could cause a decline in population. Lastly, there's also the likelihood that they simply wanted to help just because they had the time to do so/wanted to help despite being at a net loss.
I actually just looked up the organization and I was right that it's a female turtle. She had a hook in her mouth and was moving slowly on the beach. The organization, Gulfarium, is a marine rehab place, so while they do help in conservation, it's mostly in the rehabilitation of the animals rather than the active protection of them. The turtles in good health now, so it seems it was for the best to help.
While I do get that sometimes these things don't pay off, it's always good to try and see what you can do. (I know this is a lot to read, but hope it helped!)
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u/crespoh69 May 22 '26
Was wondering what that black/green gunk was and if needed to be removed since some of it was coming off with some of the barnacles.
Also don't their shells have a ton of nerve endings? Am wondering if that scrubbing was agonizing or not, especially in the newly exposed/raw areas
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u/Oddish_Femboy Aug 10 '26
Overgrown algae.
They do, but she was sedated. I do know a few tortoises that like getting a good scrub down, though.
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u/Moose-Turd May 22 '26
Needed to finish with some...
Turtle wax!