Rescued turtle to fly 1,500 miles to be released

A rare turtle that was flown to the UK after being rescued in Jersey has been given the all-clear to be released back into the wild.

Crush, the loggerhead turtle, was found apparently lifeless on a beach on 19 January following Storm Goretti.

Malnourished and suffering from hypothermia, the turtle was flown to Southampton before being transferred to Weymouth Sea Life centre, where she has been cared for alongside other rescued turtles.

Following her recovery, Crush is now back in quarantine as she prepares for the second flight of her life, 1,500 miles (2,500km) to the Azores, where she will be released in warmer waters.

Sea Life centre manager Seb Webster said he was "thrilled" to announce Crush had been given the all-clear.

He said: "We've been doing regular CT scans, regular weighing to make sure that growth is as expected.

"Our specialist animal care team and veterinary experts have finally signed off on getting Crush back to warmer waters and into the wild.

"Crush is in our quarantine facility at the moment because it's just a matter of weeks, we think. We are hoping... by the end of July."

Webster said some of the Sea Life team would be travelling with Crush from Heathrow.

He said: "Crush will spend a couple of days in a specialised facility over in the Azores to make sure that, after a relatively long day of travel - for a turtle, certainly - all things are well.

"Another member of the team will be out on the boat releasing Crush just off the coast of the Azores."

When Crush was found by a dog walker, she was cold-stunned - a hypothermia-like condition that causes the turtle's body to shut down.

She was initially cared for by New Era Veterinary Hospital in Jersey, including two weeks at clinical director Peter Hawarth's family home, before he flew to Southampton, carrying her in a box.

Loggerhead turtles can be found in the subtropical waters off north Africa and it is believed Crush was swept north by storms and currents.

Others have been found in Sussex, Suffolk and as far north as Tyree in Scotland.

The species is classed as "vulnerable" on the IUCN Red List. There are an estimated 2,000 breeding females worldwide and out of every 1,000 hatchlings, on average, only one makes it to adulthood.

It is not known if Crush is female but rescuers have called her "she" because, like other females, she has a larger tail.