A dead leatherback turtle has washed ashore on a beach on the island of Langeland between Funen and Lolland in central Denmark, DR reports.

Tue Larsen, a biologist and nature guide at the aquatic research and visitor centre Fjord & Bælt in Kerteminde on Funen, explained that sightings of the species in the region are exceptional.

“We’ve only seen four or five of them in Danish waters in the past 100 years,” he said.

Cause of death unknown
The animal’s cause of death is as yet unknown, but Larsen and colleagues at the University of Copenhagen’s zoological museum will now examine the carcass in closer detail.

It is a mystery what brought the turtle to Denmark, since it is normally restricted to the Atlantic.

The leatherback turtle is an endangered species and is on the IUCN (Internation Union for Conservation of Nature) red list.