Chaalu

Chaalu, a juvenile olive ridley turtle, was found by a guest staying at One&Only Reethi Rah, in North Malé atoll, Maldives. Mr.Pinka saw a small ghost net in the water near shore, and discovered a sea turtle entangled within it. Chaalu had sustained a deep cut on her front right flipper, caused by her entanglement in the ghost net. Although her rescuers attempted to release her back into the sea, Chaalu did not dive and swim away, but remained afloat. Our on site sea turtle biologist Erin arranged Chaalu`s transfer by seaplane to Malé where our Maldives team then arranged her transfer to the Rescue Centre at Coco Palm Dhuni Kolhu in Baa atoll.

Upon her admission, we conducted a thorough medical examination, which revealed ligature wounds on Chaalu´s front right flipper, both hind flippers and neck, all of which are consistent with ghost net injuries. Our blood tests also revealed that she is battling an internal infection. We have developed her personal treatment plan and are monitoring her progress closely. Encouragingly, within the first week Chaalu started resting comfortably on the bottom of her tank, which is a really positive sign! It means she’s feeling comfortable enough to relax, and she can dive underwater. We are optimistic for Chaalu’s healing journey.

9 November 2025
Chaalu has hit a bit of a plateau in her recovery lately. She’s been a little unpredictable with her eating and she’s definitely showing us she has preferences about what’s on the menu! We are carefully balancing all aspects of her care, including medication to fight her infection, treatments to encourage her appetite, and making sure she has plenty of quiet time and space to just be a sea turtle. Since she is still in the early stages of her treatment plan, we’ll be watching her closely over the coming days and weeks to see how she responds. Every sea turtle heals at their own pace, and we’re giving Chaalu all the time and support she needs to recover.

7 December 2025
Over the past month, Chaalu has slowly started eating again, which a wonderful sign of progress. She’s turned out to be quite the picky eater, with a clear preference for crab and the occasional prawn or fish organs. We continue to offer her a variety of seafood options to make sure she’s getting all the nutrition she needs. Recent X-rays have revealed a new challenge though: Chaalu has a bone infection in her shoulder area, which is affecting the movement in her front flippers. Strong, mobile flippers are essential for her survival in the ocean, so we have put her on an intensive treatment plan and are monitoring her very closely. Despite this setback, Chaalu’s improving appetite shows us she’s a fighter, and we’re doing everything we can to help her heal.

11 January 2026
Chaalu has shown another positive step in her recovery journey. Her appetite has improved, and she finishes her meals during most feeding sessions, although she can still be a little picky at times. Her current favourites are prawns and fish organs – she really knows what she likes! We’ve also observed Chaalu resting on the bottom of the medium tank most of the time, which is exactly what we want to see and is a very encouraging sign of her progress. We’re continuing her medical treatment and conducting regular check-ups to closely monitor her condition.

8 February 2026
What a transformation we’ve seen in Chaalu! This young sea turtle used to turn her nose up at most meals, sticking mainly to prawns and organ meat. But lately she’s become an enthusiastic eater who gobbles up every type of fish we offer her. Chaalu is dealing with mild anemia, and good nutrition is one of nature’s best medicines, so watching Chaalu finally embrace a varied diet is really encouraging. She’s still on medication for a bone infection, but we’re already seeing wonderful signs of improvement. Most exciting of all, Chaalu has started gently moving her affected flipper while she eats – small movements that show healing is happening.

Fun Fact: Chaalu (ޗާލު) means “pretty” in Dhivehi.