FWC Biologists Rescue Entangled Loggerhead Turtle

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - A couple of Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission biologists came to the rescue after spotting a loggerhead sea turtle tangled up in the lines of two traps.

The biologists were heading out for a day of diving at research sites off Key Largo when they encountered the turtle. When they grabbed one of two marker buoys and started pulling on it, they realized the line was wrapped around the turtle's body, one its front flippers, and its neck.

WATCH: Watch FWC Biologists Free Turtle

They were able to free the line from one of the traps which wrapped around the turtle's body. They then pulled it close to the boat and cut the line, close to the flipper, so they could pull it free. They then maneuvered the turtle so they could cut the line around its neck.

The freed turtle then swam off as the biologists congratulated themselves on a fine rescue.

Florida's sandy Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico beaches host one of the largest loggerhead nesting aggregations in the world.

Loggerhead sea turtles are protected as a Threatened species by the Federal Endangered Species Act and as a Federally-designated Threatened species by Florida's Endangered and Threatened Species Rule.