A turtle traveled from Mexico to Japan in 9 years

A turtle, captured in the Mexican ocean nine years ago for scientific study and was returned after being tagged, was found off the coast of Japan last week. It was a wild loggerhead turtle, a kind of sea turtle, and was found near Muroto city, Kochi prefecture, Japan. According to the Sea Turtle Association of Japan, that was the second occurrence of a wild loggerhead turtle crossing the Pacific Ocean. Last month on the 27th, the fisherman who caught the turtle contacted the Moroto Aquarium. According to the aquarium, there was a metallic plate on the right side of the turtle's flipper. On the plate, the turtle's ID number was written and the label indicated that the turtle was tagged by NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). The aquarium contacted some foreign researchers to inquire, and then discovered that it was a turtle from the Mexican ocean. In nine years, traveling more than 10 thousand kilometers, it had grown 30 cm. Since the tag was digging at its body, the aquarium changed the metallic plate to a larger one in order to continue monitoring the turtle. According to the said association, which is concerned with protecting sea turtles, this is the second occurrence internationally where a sea turtle has crossed the Pacific Ocean.