If there is anything that will make you think about your use of plastic, let this be it.
After swallowing plastic left floating in the ocean, this rescued green turtle was left with no option but to defecate it out to remove the dangerous materials from its system.
It was taken to the Mundo Marino foundation after being found caught in a fishing net off the coast of Buenos Aires.
Once at the rescue centre, vets realised the turtle’s weight was lower than normal and carried out blood tests to find out what was wrong.
The tests did not show any abnormalities but hours later the turtle began to excrete huge amounts of plastic rubbish.
In the video, the turtle can be seen swimming in a small pool when one of the foundation’s staff lifts it out of the water and plastic can be seen coming out of its rear.
When eaten, the plastic generates gases in their digestive system which can affect their diving, searching for food and ability to escape from predators.
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Juan Pablo Loureiro, a vet from Mundo Marino, said: ‘It is worrying to find rubbish inside the digestive system of a marine turtle.
‘You have to bear in mind that the accumulation of garbage generates the sensation of a lack of hunger that is decreasing due to the lack of food.
‘This makes them weaker and will condition their chances of survival.’
The turtle was given an X-ray to check all the rubbish had been expelled from its system before it spent some time recovering.
It has since been released back into the wild.
Of the 24 turtles rescued by the foundation this year, 11 have defected some kind of plastic during their treatment.
