Marine and Wildlife Welfare

Marine Turtle Fibropapillomatosis Welfare

Fibropapillomatosis is a herpesvirus-associated disease causing tumours in sea turtles, requiring wildlife rehabilitation to address.

Key Facts

Fibropapillomatosis is the most significant infectious disease affecting sea turtles globally
Internal and external tumours grow on the skin, eyes and internal organs
The disease is more prevalent near coastal urbanisation and with higher nitrogen pollution
Surgical removal of external tumours enables rehabilitation and return to the wild
Green turtles are most commonly affected, with Hawaiian populations particularly impacted

Welfare Considerations

Fibropapillomatosis causes significant suffering through tumour burden, impaired vision and feeding difficulty. Rehabilitation centres that remove tumours and restore turtles to health provide direct welfare benefit to individual animals as well as contributing to population recovery.

What You Can Do

Support sea turtle rehabilitation centres treating fibropapillomatosis cases financially
Advocate for coastal water quality improvements reducing nitrogen pollution linked to disease prevalence
Avoid activities that disturb sea turtle habitat or nesting beaches