A turtle released after nearly three years of rehabilitation has had another lucky escape — performing a giant U-turn just before January's volcanic eruption in Tonga.
Tilly the female green sea turtle was released and tagged with a special transmitter at Flynn Reef, off the coast of Cairns in November, before promptly embarking on a journey east towards the Pacific islands.
A Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef tracking map shows the little turtle travelled 1,867 kilometres over 47 days but began turning back towards the Queensland coast days before the eruption on a volcanic island north of the Tongan capital Nuku'alofa on January 15.
Jennie Gilbert from the Cairns Turtle Rehabilitation Centre, where Tilly spent several years recuperating after becoming stuck in a net with no hope of survival, said the turtle clearly knew something was brewing.
"She was heading towards Vanuatu or the Solomon Islands in a straight line virtually and then two days before the Tonga volcano she did a complete U-turn," Ms Gilbert said.
"You hear about these stories, particularly with tsunamis, where animals try to start getting themselves out of the danger zone.
"I've never seen it happen before and I think it's just incredible."
Tonga has been reeling from the impact of the undersea volcanic eruption on Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai, around 65 kilometres north of Tonga's capital Nuku'alofa, which triggered a tsunami with up to 15-metre-high waves.
The eruption and tsunami killed three people, destroyed villages and resorts, and severed communications to the island with a population of around 105,000 people.
Heading back home
A Citizens of the Great Barrier Reef tracking map shows Tilly has covered 2,815 kilometres in 69 days with an average speed of 1.69 kilometres per hour.
Ms Gilbert said she currently appears to be heading home towards Cairns.
"She's been pinged on the reef off Cairns and we think she's heading back to the rehabilitation centre at Fitzroy Island," Ms Gilbert said.
"She's done more kilometres than any other turtle that we have ever released — over 2,700 kilometres.
"Not bad considering she's only just turned three years old."
