For nearly three years, Yoshi the legendary loggerhead turtle has been making headlines around the world. ‘We knew that the day would come when her satellite would send its last transmission and we would lose contact with her. That day has arrived,’ said the Two Oceans Aquarium.
Since her release in December 2017, she has swum over 40,000km. She has explored the west coast of southern Africa – visiting Robben Island, Namibia’s Skeleton Coast and even Angola; turned around and has kept going all the way to Australia. She made pitstops at various feeding areas – even discovering sites unknown to science, kept swimming against the currents, but incredibly kept up her remarkable pace.
Watch her release from Cape Town in 2017:
With the final transmissions of Yoshi’s tag, it is evident that she has settled down in the La Grange area of Western Australia’s Eighty Mile Beach.
Read: Yoshi the turtle finds home in Australia
CEO of the Two Oceans Aquarium Education Foundation, Maryke Musson has been crucial to Yoshi’s story – from the planning of Yoshi’s release in 2017, to the ongoing tracking and interpretation of her satellite data.
‘We’re really pleased to know that a serial Yoshi-fan is at the helm of one of South Africa’s top sea turtle rehabilitation and rescue programmes! Analysis of Yoshi’s final satellite transmissions, and what we think they tell us about her future, will be posted in the near future by the Education Foundation.’
Yoshi is the ultimate record-breaker – she has the second-longest tracked journey of any animal ever recorded, and she is the first loggerhead turtle that has ever been proven to have made the journey from Africa to Australia. You go girl! 🐢 https://t.co/JeJ6FEvsmH #yoshi pic.twitter.com/YYw0ihnXIj
— Two Oceans Aquarium (@2OceansAquarium) August 25, 2020
‘Yoshi will always hold a very special place in our hearts, and we deeply appreciate all her followers, fans, researchers in South Africa and Australia and the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries for the incredible support. Yoshi was part of our lives since 1997, and now, as an Australian citizen, she has another 60 years or more ahead of her for exploring and enjoying the ocean,’ the Aquarium concluded.
To read her full back story, click here.
Picture: Twitter/Two Oceans Aquarium
