A juvenile Hawaiian green sea turtle found entangled in a fishing line or netting off Kauai’s north shore was euthanized Monday after it suffered irreparable damage to its flippers.

The 80-pound turtle was spotted by a hotel guest after it washed ashore Sunday night in the Pali Ke Kua area, near the St. Regis Princeville Resort. Responding veterinarian Dr. Scott Sims took the reptile to his Kilauea office for examination. The turtle, about 2 feet long, had a thick fishing line around both of its front flippers and neck. X-ray images revealed bone fractures caused by the line tightly wrapped around its flippers.

Sims conferred with biologists at the state Department of Land and Natural Resources’ Aquatic Resources Division and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Marine Fisheries Service. A decision was made to euthanize the turtle because due to the injuries it could not survive in the sea.

"Once it loses its front flippers, it’s completely immobilized. It can’t swim. It can’t dive for food," Sims said.

Biologists say it cannot be determined externally whether a juvenile green turtle is male or female. Adult males have longer, thicker tails, and claws on their flippers. Adult females have short, stubby tails.

The young turtle was taken to the Division of Aquatic Resources’ Kauai office after it was euthanized Monday. The carcass will be flown to NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Services on Oahu where a necropsy will be performed.

Biologist Don Heacock of the Division of Aquatic Resources’ Kauai office said the fractured flippers could not be restored to function properly.

"It’s impossible to fix the damage. It’s like a horse or a donkey breaking all of its legs. It’s a mortal wound," he said. "The most humane thing was to euthanize it and put it out of its suffering."

Green sea turtles rely on their front flippers for mobility.

George Balazs, leader of the Marine Turtle Research Program of NOAA’s National Marine Fisheries Service, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, said the turtle suffered severe tissue damage from restricted blood flow due to the fishing line, causing its flippers to swell and decay. It probably tookweeks or months for the fishing line to cut off circulation and cause bone fractures.

Hawaiian green sea turtles are listed as a threatened species under federal and state law, according to the Aquatic Resources Division’s website. The population has recovered in recent years. However, a disease called fibropapillomatosis that causes tumors still poses a threat.

Though their exterior appearance is a combination of brown, black and gray colors, the population is called "green" turtles because of their internal fat tissue that is green due to their herbivorous diet that consists of sea grasses and algae, according to NOAA’s Fisheries Service’s website. They can grow up to 36 inches long and weigh up to 250 pounds.