Repeated Biting by a Mediterranean Loggerhead Sea Turtle

Abstract

Mediterranean loggerhead sea turtles ( Caretta caretta) are very large. During spawning season, they land on the beaches of Turkey and Greece at night, which are frequently visited by humans, and lay their eggs. Typically, they suck feed in deep water. It is uncommon for C caretta, which have strong mouths and jaws, to attack people. We report a case of a 44-y-old female patient who was attacked by a turtle on the Mediterranean beach in September 2020. She was brought to the emergency department, where she was noted to have a deep cut on the thumb and large bruises on the left side of her waist. The patient was discharged with appropriate wound care, antibacterial drug, and tetanus vaccine. The wound healed within a few months by developing granulation tissue. However, this report draws attention to the fact that, under some circumstances, C caretta can become aggressive toward people swimming off heavily populated beaches.