This 60kg beast, star of Manchester's new Sea Life Centre, eats 500g sprouts, three times a day. And only one brand will do...
Yes, you read that correctly. The 60kg turtle, rescued from a farm in the Cayman Islands in 2006, is the latest addition to Manchester's new Sea Life centre. Since arriving in the city three months ago, he has embarked upon a new diet, consisting almost exclusively of the little green demon we bemoan throughout December then forget about for another year.
Oh Ernie, don't you know that sprouts aren't for life, they're just for Christmas? Fed three times a day, consuming around 500g of sprouts and miscellaneous veg, the Asda nextdoor has had to up its orders to keep up with the turtle's demands.
A chap with refined taste, he'll only eat the one brand. Chuck in a Waitrose sprout? Nothing. Sainsbury's sprout? See you later. I even offered him my last Rolo but no dice. It's Asda sprouts or nothing. You'd have to ask the fishes if he suffers the same, windy repercussions of sprout consumption that we humans do.
You may think this has the whiff of a PR stunt dreamt up by marketing geniuses determined to win the supermarket war. Alerted to Ernie's brand preference, I was half expecting to find the turtle tank sponsored by Asda, plastered with pictures of people patting their back pockets, grinning coyly. But no. Lucy Handel, displays curator and sea trek co-ordinator, has been with Ernie since his arrival, and insists there is no ulterior motive: "Asda is just next door, so it's where we got his food. When we tried to feed him another brand, he turned his nose up. He can be quite snooty."
Saved by Sea Life from a farm that breeds turtles for soup, Ernie is set to become quite the celebrity (a twitter account is imminent, surely.) Turtle conservation is at the heart of the centre's "Breed, Rescue and Protect programme", and Ernie is the perfect mascot. Fundraising for the scheme has enabled Sea Life to build a new turtle hospital on the island of Zakynthos in Greece, where 90% of loggerhead turtle nests are found.
Unable to be released back into the wild, the eight year old spends his days gliding harmoniously around the large tank, alongside 35 other species, including black tip reef sharks and fish that nibble affectionately at his neck.
If you're feeling particularly brave, you can embark on a Sea Trek, suiting up with oxygen masks to get into the tank for an underwater adventure. People friendly as a giant green sea turtle comes, Ernie is happy to pose for pictures and undoubtedly, if you take an Asda sprout, you'll make a friend for life.
Manchester's Sea Life Centre opens to the public on 6 June.
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