A large sea turtle was spotted in a closed off part of the uMzimkhulu River, by construction workers, over the weekend.
They were working on the uMzimkhulu bridge.
The KZN Stranding Network partners were alerted to it, and identified the fellow, as a mature Green sea turtle.
She is one of two, trapped, during the adjustment of the river mouth, in order to work on the bridge.
The network’s team attempted to go out and catch the turtle, on Tuesday morning, in the river.
The South African Association for Marine Biological Research (SAAMBR) reported on Tuesday, that the team was made up of the NSRI Port Edward, Andy Coetzee, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, Geremy Cliff, Tanya Nadauld, breath hold divers and local residents.
They released the female turtle immediately into the river, transported the male, to uShaka Sea World for observation, DNA sampling, and satellite tagging prior to release.
The male weighs almost 110kg.
“We very rarely get the opportunity to track male sea turtles as they never come ashore, unlike mature females who nest on beaches, so this is an incredible opportunity to learn more about the oceanic movements of a male Green sea turtle” said SAAMBR on social platforms.
Picture: SAAMBR