Aer Lingus is flying a vulnerable turtle that was washed up in Co Donegal to Gran Canaria today in the hope that it will be able to thrive in the warm waters around the Canary Islands.
The loggerhead sea turtle, named Julius Caesar - or JC - for his fighting spirit, was found on a Donegal beach by a local family in January 2019, when he was about nine months old.
Loggerhead sea turtles – "the living representatives of a group of reptiles that has existed on Earth and travelled our seas for the last 100 million years", according to the World Wildlife Fund – are an endangered species.
JC is thought to have ended up in Ireland after being "caught in the wrong current and swept along the Gulf Stream. He was suffering from hypothermia, stunned by the cold water, and weighed just a few hundred grams", according to the airline and Exploris Aquarium, in Co Down, where he has been recuperating. He now weighs 25kg, and could reach 100kg by the time he is fully grown.
The turtle will fly to the Canaries on Aer Lingus flight EI 782, which takes off at 1.10pm today, travelling in a waterproof crate in the plane’s cabin. After the flight lands, the turtle will be taken to Tarifa wildlife recovery centre.
The flight's captain, Peter Lumsden, says, "Keeping the turtle's temperature above 19 degrees is critical to his wellbeing, and he requires regular monitoring and shell lubrication, so placing him in the aircraft hold was not an option. His specially designed crate will be securely strapped across a number of seats in the cabin. Like all of us on the flight today, I'm sure he is looking forward to the warmer climate upon landing."
After being handed over by his minder, Portia Sampson, JC will be cared for by Pascual Calabuig, a vet at the recovery centre, who will monitor his behaviour, feeding and physical condition before releasing him into the sea later this week.
Aer Lingus repatriated another rogue loggerhead, Leona, to Gran Canaria in 2014, after she was found in Co Clare in 2013.
