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Sadness as Donegal turtle dies
27.01.15
DONEGAL and its
wildlife is making headlines again today with news
of another endangered turtle washing up on our
coastline.
The loggerhead turtle was discovered at
Glencolmcille at the weekend by local woman Grainne
Rua who alerted wildlife authorities.
The creature, named 'Columba' was very weak when
found. It was transferred for treatment to the Exploris Aquarium in Portaferry,
Co Down.
It sadly passed away last night despite the centre's
heroic efforts to save it.
Columba's ordeal follows confirmation that a small
marine reptile washed up dead in Rossnowlagh over
Christmas, was the world's smallest and most
endangered species, the Kemp's Ridley turtle. |
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Glencolmcille turtle Columba has
sadly passed away. Photo: IWDG Facebook. |
The creature, measuring
about a foot long, was found by Coastwatch Ireland
volunteer Aoife Flynn.
Just over 40 Kemp's Ridley turtles have been
recorded in Irish waters since the 18th Century.
Only 1,000 breeding females are known to currently
exist.
Greencastle-based zoologist Dr Trish Murphy helped
perform the autopsy on the turtle found in
Rossnowlagh, identifying it as the rare breed.
Meanwhile, latest data taken from her GPS
tracker, shows that 15 year old 'Leona' is "getting
stronger and healthier" as the weeks progress.
Her average swimming speed has increased from 20km a
day to 29km a day, with scientists hopeful she will
eventually reach the loggerhead average of about
38.4km a day. Her GPS data, analysed by Celestial
Green Ventures, shows that she is
currently in waters off the coast of Western Sahara. |
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