Displaying items by tag: Turtles

29th April 2020

Turtles Could Spell Trouble For Cork Lough, City Officials Fear

Turtles spotted basking in Cork City’s Lough have raised concerns over the balance of its fragile ecosystem, as the Irish Examiner reports.

The seven amphibians, which could be freshwater terrapins, are believed to have been unwanted pets released into the Lough which lies south-west of the city centre.

But their presence poses a biosecurity hazard in a body of water that only two years ago saw its carp population fall victim to carp edema virus.

Local Independent Cllr Mick Finn said: “The Lough is such an amazing resource, both as a wildfowl sanctuary and as a recreational amenity — this highlights again the need for constant vigilance and for investment in it.”

The Irish Examiner has more on the story HERE.

Published in Marine Wildlife

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LÉ Róisín Releases Rescued Turtles On Mediterranean Journey

Una the loggerhead was one of two turtles released from the LÉ Róisín en route to the Mediterranean this week

#Turtles - Two rescued loggerhead turtles have been returned to the ocean by the crew of LÉ Róisín as the Naval Service vessel makes its way to the Mediterranean on deployment.

According to RTÉ News, the Naval Service were only happy to oblige when contacted by Dingle Oceanworld about the possibility of releasing Una and Tallula.

The former was nursed back to health at the Dingle marine wildlife sanctuary after she was found at Barryroe in West Cork last December.

LÉ Róisín releases rescued turtles while en route to Mediterranean (Vid:Irish Naval Service) https://t.co/yyrasAbj23 https://t.co/xJ8iSENsdr
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) May 5, 2016

She was joined on the OPV by Tallula, a turtle washed up in Cornwall who was treated at Newquay's Blue Reef Aquarium and flown into Dingle especially for release.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, LÉ Róisín and its 57-strong crew are headed to the Mediterranean as the first deployment for the Naval Service this year under Operation PONTUS.

Published in Marine Wildlife

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About Conor O'Brien, Irish Circumnavigator

In 1923-25, Conor O'Brien became the first amateur skipper to circle the world south of the Great Capes. O'Brien's boat Saoirse was reputedly the first small boat (42-foot, 13 metres long) to sail around the world since Joshua Slocum completed his voyage in the 'Spray' during 1895 to 1898. It is a journey that O' Brien documented in his book Across Three Oceans. O'Brien's voyage began and ended at the Port of Foynes, County Limerick, Ireland, where he lived.

Saoirse, under O'Brien's command and with three crew, was the first yacht to circumnavigate the world by way of the three great capes: Cape Horn, Cape of Good Hope and Cape Leeuwin; and was the first boat flying the Irish tri-colour to enter many of the world's ports and harbours. He ran down his easting in the Roaring Forties and Furious Fifties between the years 1923 to 1925.

Up until O'Brien's circumnavigation, this route was the preserve of square-rigged grain ships taking part in the grain race from Australia to England via Cape Horn (also known as the clipper route).

At a Glance - Conor O'Brien's Circumnavigation

In June 1923, Limerick man Conor O’Brien set off on his yacht, the Saoirse — named after the then newly created Irish Free State — on the two-year voyage from Dun Laoghaire Harbour that was to make him the first Irish amateur to sail around the world.

June 1923 - Saoirse’s arrival in Madeira after her maiden passage out from Dublin Bay

2nd December 1924 - Saoirse crossed the longitude of Cape Horn

June 20th 1925 - O’Brien’s return to Dun Laoghaire Harbour