Sanfa

Sanfa is an adult female olive ridley turtle who was rescued by the watersports team at Adaaran Select Meedhupparu in Raa Atoll in January 2026. Her rescuers found her tightly entangled in a ghost net, but once free of the net, they saw she was unable to dive.

Sanfa has suffered severe ligature wounds to her right front flipper and she is weakened by leech infestation and starvation. Thanks to the quick actions of her rescuers, she was safely retrieved from the net and transferred to our Raa Atoll Sea Turtle Care Centre at JOALI BEING. She is now receiving expert veterinary care to give her the best possible chance at recovery and release.

Fun fact: the name Sanfa is used to describe a royal lady in early Maldivian language.

7 June 2026
We are delighted with how well Sanfa is doing. Since being moved to a larger tank, she has been able to begin a more advanced stage of her feeding therapy: kinetic buoy feeding. With it she has shown us that she can dive down and fully submerge herself, which is a wonderful sign of how far her recovery has come. And if you ever need to motivate Sanfa? Just bring out the barracuda – it is her absolute favourite food! Her wounds are continuing to heal very well under our ongoing care and we are feeling genuinely optimistic about her recovery journey. Sanfa is working hard, eating well and healing beautifully.

10 May 2026
Sanfa has been making great progress. We recently moved her to the large tank and she adapted very well to the new environment. She is also becoming more comfortable with buoy feeding therapy, and we recently observed her diving on her own right after a feeding session! She managed to reach halfway down the tank, which is very encouraging to see. We continue to closely monitor her condition to ensure she stays on the right path toward recovery and we are hopeful that she will continue making positive progress.

12 April 2026
Sanfa is truly impressing us this month. She has taken to her buoy feeding therapy with real determination, working hard to earn every meal and eating very well as a result. This kind of drive is exactly what we hope to see in a sea turtle preparing for life back in the wild. Her wounds are also continuing to heal nicely and each week brings visible improvement. It is genuinely wonderful to watch her transformation. As her strength and endurance grow, we will keep challenging Sanfa to get her meals, making sure she is truly ready to fend for herself when the time comes. All in all, she is giving us a great deal to smile about!

8 March 2026
Sanfa has been making excellent progress since joining us at the Sea Turtle Care Centre in Raa Atoll, and we are really pleased. She has settled in beautifully and has found her appetite, although she definitely knows what she likes and isn’t afraid to be a little picky! Her wounds are healing and showing significant improvement, which is a great sign. We have also recently started her on Targeted External Weight Therapy to help her with her positioning in the water, and now that she is eating more consistently and building her strength, we are looking forward to beginning dive training with her soon. Every step Sanfa takes is a meaningful one, and we are excited to support her as she continues to grow stronger and more confident. She is on a really promising path!