Yoshi the loggerhead turtle is exploring coastal southern Angola and has been moving around Ghost Island in the Tiger’s Bay area.
According to the Two Oceans Aquarium, Yoshi’s swimming behaviour strongly suggests that she is feeding there, likely taking advantage of the fertile waters to fill her belly.
The sandy island she is exploring was once a thriving commercial fishing community, but due to the lack of freshwater most inhabitants abandoned the island by 1974.
The area is well known for its rich marine life as well as bird life.
One of the Two Oceans Aquarium’s most famous and beloved former inhabitants, Yoshi was released in December, about 27 nautical miles off Hout Bay. Along with the 183kg Yoshi, 27 rehabilitated hatchling loggerhead turtles were released.
She was fitted with a satellite tag, as researchers hope to track her journey for up to three years.
Yoshi was the size of a dinner plate when she arrived at the aquarium in 1996.
She was handed over by a chef on board a fishing vessel in Table Bay harbour and named after the chef, Yoshi.
The aquarium’s latest tracker update shows that Yoshi has travelled a total of 3646km since her release.
Her swimming pace has remained steady at about 29.4km/day.
She has another 1000km of Angolan waters to cover before she reaches the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
“Yoshi has been out in the ocean now for 126 days. She seems to have adapted well to life back in the big blue, just as we hoped and anticipated,” the aquarium said.