Information

Toby has a minion!

I protect the Small School of Neons

Toby

The

Common Chelon
Owner:

Lisa

Age: 5 years, 7 months, 6 days

Born: August 10th, 2020

Adopted: 5 years, 7 months, 6 days ago

Adopted: August 10th, 2020

Pet Spotlight Winner
June 27th, 2021

Statistics

Level: 1
Strength: 10
Defense: 10
Speed: 10
Health: 10
HP: 10/10
Intelligence: 0
Books Read: 0
Food Eaten: 16
Job: Unemployed

Toby was only hours old, swimming away from the beach where he was born, when he encountered his first piece. His sister was trying to eat something that looked sort of like a jellyfish. He swam over and asked her what she was eating...but she didn't respond. She was caught in one of its strange looped tentacles and she was dead. He gasped and swam off as fast as his little flippers would take him. The next day, after sleeping overnight with some of his siblings under some flotsam on the ocean's surface, he was looking for food when he saw another of the strange jellyfish things that had killed his sister. He gave it a wide berth and went for a smaller jellyfish near it. It was missing its tentacles oddly, but he took a bite...and quickly spit it out. It wasn't a jellyfish. It was hard and crunchy and...not food. There was a skinny, cylindrical thing nearby that he thought looked like a bloated needlefish. He took a bite at it, but no - it too, was made of the weird crunchy not-food stuff. The next few weeks, he encountered lots more of the strange not-jellyfish and sadly, saw more of his siblings and others entangled in them, floating along, lifeless. At one point, there was a huge floating thing, that he was sure couldn't possibly be a jellyfish, but it had lots of marine creatures ensnared in its grasp, including a small whale. As he was trying to swim around it, the current changed and before he could change direction, he was trapped as it swung around. He tried with all his might to get free, but his flippers were stuck and it was around his neck. He floated, frozen with fear, near the surface of the ocean, just able to get his nose above water.

The crew noticed the ghost net off their port bow and went into rescue mode. They worked together to pull the huge net onto their deck, exclaiming at its weight. They were sad at how many poor creatures were caught in its grip. If humans would just properly do away with their old equipment and trash, so many lives could be spared. Just as the crew got to the end of the big net, they caught sight of a small sea turtle tangled badly on the top edge. They got the net on board and got to work cutting him free. Everyone was all smiles and high-fives when they were able to release one life back to the ocean. And the turtle was certainly happy as he sped quickly away through the waves.

Toby didn't know who the large, strange creatures were who had freed him from the giant jellyfish creature thing, but he wasn't going to stick around to find out. He swam faster than he ever had in his life, away from the large, loud thing the creatures were floating on, away from the deadly, strange not-jellyfish, and towards shallower water. Once he slowed down, he realized there were small fish, real jellyfish, and tree roots all around him. The water was shallower and warm. For the first time in his short life, he felt something like safety. He didn't see any of whatever-it-was that was floating all over the ocean, the not-food, not-jellyfish, deadly stuff that had killed so many. He rested under the roots of a large mangrove and thought. What was befouling the ocean? He was young, sure...but he could still do something. Maybe he could clean it up. Maybe he could make a small difference if he did. A small difference was better than no difference after all, and so he set to work.

You probably guessed that the 'not-food, not-jellyfish' in the story is plastic and nets. Sea creatures don't know that plastic bags, drink lids, straws, other plastic one-use items, and nets are not something they should eat - in many cases, they look a lot like jellyfish, which many creatures eat. Plastic pollution and ghost nets (which is what fishing nets that have been left adrift are called) are a huge problem and are killing many creatures every day. But we can all make a change! Choose reusable bags for shopping, use a reusable cup for your morning coffee, but your lunch items in containers you can use over and over again, and sign petitions to get your county/state/country/etc. to ban plastic bags in grocery and big box stores. You can also sign petitions online to do away with ghost nets, by fining those who are caught leaving them, and to do away with large net-fishing altogether. Educate yourself and those around you - like Toby, we can all make a difference!

Toby is named 'Toby' after the last pet turtle I had. I got him as gift - he was a tiny, tiny baby. I had him for years and only gave him away when he got too big to house him properly. He went to a teacher who had a pond in her classroom - and another turtle to be his friend.

Writing by

Lisa, Pixel Turtle Animation from Peachie's Collection, Background from DepositPhotos with blue color edit by

Lisa, plastic free turtle from CleanPNG