Giant leatherback sea turtle found dead on beach in the Philippines

2019-11-29 4

A giant turtle was found dead on the shores of Sariaya, Quezon, the Philippines on the morning of November 26.

The 400-kilogram giant is a female leatherback sea turtle. It was discovered by tourists walking along the beach around 6 a.m. in front of a resort and reported to local officials.

Local government official Sherwin Rosales said the turtle was 6ft long and 3ft wide.

He said: "Upon inspection, we saw the tag on its flipper. We will have to verify which organization is the tag from."

The Provincial Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources said it will conduct a necropsy to pinpoint what killed the marine animal. This is the fourth case of a sea turtle found dead in the area.

Leatherbacks are the largest of all living turtles. Instead of a shell, skin and oily flesh cover its back.