An endangered sea turtle was rescued by fishermen after being shot through its neck with a harpoon.<br /><br />Three fishermen found the hapless sea turtle trapped inside a cast net while they were fishing near Koh Kut island in Trat, eastern Thailand last Monday (August 12).<br /><br />The turtle had been stabbed in its neck with the sharp spear from a fishing harpoon. <br /><br />The fishermen then untangled him and brought him onto the boat.<br /><br />Footage from the afternoon shows one of the fishermen holding the injured animal while the others were pulling the long spear out of the injured turtle's neck. <br /><br />The creature was released back into the sea a few moments later as the fishermen did notice and heavy bleeding from the would.<br /><br />Police believe the harpoon spear might belong to a local, who shot the turtle while diving to catch fish. <br /><br />Koh Kut district sheriff Chatchai Thongli has asked local fishermen and tour guides to report anybody seen attempted to hurt or kill the animals.<br /><br />The chief said: ''Officers of Marine Conservation Center believed that the harpoon was fired from a fishing gun, which was not used by local fishermen in the area.<br /><br />''Sea turtles one of the preserved marine animals in Thailand, so we'll ensure that such an incident would not happen again in the area.''<br /><br />There are seven different species of sea turtles. The IUCN Red List classes them all as either endangered or vulnerable, apart from Flatback turtles which lack data on their numbers. <br /><br />From the video, it is not known which type of sea turtle it is that was rescued.
