Leatherback turtle entangled in fishing gear freed

A "vulnerable" leatherback turtle badly entangled in trawler gear has been rescued by a fisherman.

The turtle was attached to a "heavy solid buoy" and "would have died" had it not been cut free on Saturday, conservationists said.

Neil Jenkins found the turtle in waters about 6 miles (9.6km) north of the Isles of Scilly.

He said it was a "bit of a struggle" to release the turtle but it escaped with "cuts and bruises".

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Mr Jenkins, from St Mary's, said the turtle was "a bit beat up" and guessed it had been trapped for "at least a couple of days".

"The buoy it was trapped under had been rubbing on its head and had taken a bit of its skin off.

"We thought it would be easy to free him but it turned out to be a bit of a struggle because it had been in there a while with the rope wrapped around its neck," he added.

Nikki Banfield from Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust described the discovery as a "rare occurrence" but said one seal had been reported entangled in fishing gear off Scilly so far this year.

"It was really lucky that they found it. It would have died because it had rope all around its neck and head and was attached to a heavy solid buoy, preventing it from diving," she said.

According to the Marine Conservation Society, accidental entanglement in fishing gear is one of the biggest threats to the species, especially long lines and drift nets.

A spokesman said: "This does happen rather commonly to turtles, as they can feed on the life that can become attached such things."

They said the species are vulnerable as only about one in 1,000 hatchlings make it to adulthood.