Terengganu fisheries director Ruzaidi Mamat said the department was informed of the discovery at 5.18pm and a team was sent to the location.

“Upon examination, the turtle, weighing about 15kg and estimated to be four to five years old, was found to be injured in the eye.

“The cause of death could not be determined, but I believe it could have been as a result of being trapped in a fishing net,” he said when contacted today.

He said the turtle was buried at Pantai Pandak.

“It is the 38th death of a green turtle recorded this year.”

Ruzaidi advised the public to contact the nearest fisheries district office or call 03-88885019 should they spot a turtle that is stranded or dead on the beach.

Classified as endangered, green turtles are threatened by overharvesting of their eggs, hunting, being caught in fishing gear and loss of nesting beach sites.

Like other sea turtles, they migrate long distances between feeding grounds and the beaches where they are hatched.