Tourists in Croatia at risk. An aggressive turtle is prowling off the coast

Some time ago we reported that on the popular island of Mljet, jellyfish appeared in the Adriatic Sea, whose burns cause severe pain and wounds that are difficult to heal. It seems that in a similar area, tourists are threatened by another animal.

This time, however, we are talking about a giant turtle that attacks people. He has bitten 4 tourists bathing so far. And experts wonder why he behaves this way.

Aggressive turtle attacks tourists in Croatia

In the area of ​​Slatina beach on the Croatian island of Ciovo in Dalmatia, a large sea turtle has been sighted since the beginning of the month. According to witnesses, it is over a meter long and behaves extremely aggressively. He’s bitten four bathers so far.

It turns out that a protected species of loggerhead turtle is behind the attacks. The reptile was first spotted in Čiovo in early August when it attacked someone from behind and left a 10-centimeter red mark on the tourist’s body.

Professor Alen Soldo from the Department of Marine Studies at the University of Split says that there are a large number of turtles in the Adriatic, but they usually stay in the open sea, so people do not notice them.

The specialist also reminds that these animals are usually not aggressive and if they attack, it is as a warning. It is puzzling, however, why the turtle swims so close to the beach and behaves so unusually. “If you approach a loggerhead turtle while it is in its territory, where it is foraging or breeding, it will defend itself. In that case, he’ll hit his head or bite,” said Soldo.

Warnings for tourists

Locals say that after the attack someone hung posters on the beach warning bathers about the turtle.

“I’m a little scared, we don’t go to this beach anymore because of the children. We have very nice beaches, so for security reasons it is not difficult to go to another place. It’s obvious that we’re disturbing the turtles,” she said, however, from the local residents.

Another adds: “I’ve lived here for years and this is the first time I’ve seen loggerhead turtles attack like this. I’m afraid. I don’t know how I could swim knowing that a turtle might bite me.”

Loggerhead turtles can grow up to 120 centimeters. Although they have no teeth, their extremely strong jaws can cause scratches and bruises when biting. They are strong enough to break bones. According to the professor, the greatest threat is caused by a bacterial infection that the turtle can transfer to humans.

Sea turtle bites in the Adriatic are extremely rare, but they do happen. A few years ago, a turtle bit several bathers in Boka Kotorska, similar attacks were also recorded in Greece.