BOISE, Idaho — If you see a turtle at the airport, don't be alarmed. It's all part of the work of Turtles Fly Too, a Boise non-profit that transports endangered sea animals to rescue centers.
The group just relocated Berni Stranders, an Olive Ridley Sea Turtle, to SeaWorld in San Diego. He was later successfully released back into the ocean.
Berni was found stranded near Vancouver Island in cold waters, where he had a low chance of survival. A group called Ocean Wise nursed him back to health and Turtles Fly Too, led by Sun Valley pilot Jeff Miller, donated pilot and aircraft time to get the turtle back to the warm waters of southern California.
Once Berni arrived in San Diego, they placed a tracker on him and let him go off the shore of Point Loma.
"When I first looked the first day he was just offshore of San Diego, and now you see this big long line and you see him going further and further away and you're going oh my god it worked," said Bonnie Barnes, Turtles Fly Too executive director. "We did it and its successful because there are sometimes, we transport species and it is not always successful."
Berni is living the good life near Cabo San Lucas now. If you want to track his journey, click here.
