Finding 94kg turtle delights Far North woman on morning walk

Karikari Peninsula resident Kathy Cowan with a distressed green turtle washed ashore on Tokerau Beach on November 20 – the first of two turtles found on the beach in two weeks.

From a distance, Karikari Peninsula resident Kathy Cowan knew it was something out of the ordinary.

Coming from Hawaii, she’s used to seeing plenty of marine life, but this had her buzzing – a 94kg female green turtle washed ashore in heavy seas.

This was the first of two turtles found washed up and in distress on Tokerau Beach in two weeks.

Last month, Auckland kindergarten teacher Rachel Dudley and husband Steve found a rare baby loggerhead turtle. Sadly, it died at Auckland Zoo, possibly due to plastic found in its gut.

The green turtle was reported to the Department of Conservation (DoC) and later taken to Auckland Zoo, then Kelly Tarlton’s in Auckland, to be rehabilitated and released at a later date.

Kelly Tarlton’s Aquarium aquarist Bella Jansen said it was still early days for the turtle found by Cowan, but it was hoped she would recover and be released in the Far North.

Cowan said after years of scuba diving and time in the ocean in Hawaii, she was used to seeing plenty of marine life, including turtles.

This latest encounter left her excited and pleased she helped save an important marine mammal.

“I walk on Tokerau Beach every morning with dogs Millie and Pipi and around 10am on November 20 we noticed that the surf was really, really big and rough.

“We were walking down the beach and saw something that looked unusual in the distance.

“When we got to it you could see it was this big old turtle, and it wasn’t looking very fit or healthy, looking like it might have been tumbling about in the big surf.”

This big 94kg green sea turtle was covered in algae and seagrass when Kathy Cowan found it.

The turtle was not very active, and its shell was covered in algae and seagrass.

Cowan worried it might perish but knew to contact DoC who sent a ranger.

The turtle was later taken to Auckland.

In her years in Northland, Cowan had never seen a big turtle and was delighted to have been involved in the rescue.

“I’ve always been an advocate for what goes on in the sea - and what should not be in there like our trash and plastic.

“As a nature lover this was such an amazing experience, and it’s great to see that she is still alive.”

Meanwhile at Kelly Tarlton’s, Jansen said it was believed the turtle came ashore as it was very fatigued, dehydrated and had cold shock.

“The vet team at Auckland Zoo tested her blood and X-rayed her as well as giving her some fluids.

“She seems to be doing well and is currently in one of our quarantine tanks, however, it is still very early days in her rehabilitation journey, and we are closely monitoring her during this time,” she said.

“We are still trying to get her to eat before we move her to one of our oceanariums to gain more strength in a larger area.

“If she continues to improve, she will be released either by the end of this summer or next summer considering her condition at the time.

“We try to release turtles as close as possible to where they were found, so she will most likely be released around where we did our most recent ones in Rangiputa Beach.”

• Anyone who finds a turtle should call the DoC emergency hotline 0800 DOC HOT (0800 362 468).
• Do not try to refloat turtles or take them to your local vet.