
One of the world's rarest tropical turtles is 'lucky to be alive' after being washed up on a chilly Welsh beach thousands of miles away from her tropical home.
The female turtle, part of a rare species usually found swimming in the Gulf of Mexico, is being warmed up by vets at a specialist sea zoo.
Named Menai, she is believed to be either a Kemp's ridley turtle, the rarest sea turtle species in the world, or an Olive ridley, a species which has never before been found in the UK.
The two species are difficult to tell apart, but both are usually found in warm waters more than 4,000 miles (6,437km) away, in the waters around Florida and Mexico.
She was found on the shore at the Tan-Y-Foel beach on the Menai Straits at Angelsey, North Wales - and has been named Menai by experts looking after her at the Angelsey Sea Zoo.
The turtle is thought to have been carried across the Atlantic Ocean by the Gulf Stream together with strong westerly winds.















Comment: See also: