A turtle has been rescued in front of a boat load of day trippers aboard Calypso after being found around one nautical mile out to sea.

The female turtle, estimated to weigh around 60kg, was a "floater" - a term used for turtles who are unable to dive due to a disease which causes air to be trapped between the shell and body.

Left on or near the surface, the turtle loses the ability to feed itself and will die from starvation, or become prey to predators such as sharks or crocodiles.

Luckily for this particular turtle, staff from Calypso and Quicksilver looked after the animal until a Queensland Parks and Wildlife officer arrived at Meridien Marina to take her away for rehabilitation.

Eleanor Jones from Calyps's parent company, Tropical Journeys said she had received good news about the turtle.

"She is in fantastic condition other than not being able to dive under and she has a good chance of returning to the ocean. Tony (Calypso's skipper) sat and watched the turtle for 15 minutes and saw she was having difficulty diving.

"Tony made the decision to pick her up onto the vessel and bring her to shore. Russell from Quicksilver contacted the QPWS and helped get the turtle on shore and comfortable.

"She has been taken to Cairns and could possibly end up at the new turtle rehabilitation centre on Fitzroy Island."

Just two weeks ago another even larger female turtle, estimated to weigh over 100kg, was rescued by Port Douglas Fisheries officers and delivered to wildlife officers after also being found floating.

Turtles are often found floating after consuming discarded plastic.

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