A 3D-printed Beak Gets A Wounded Turtle To Return To The Sea

By R. Siva Kumar - 19 May '15 09:51AM

Now this is one turtle with a rather strange, repaired snout. The 3D Printing Industry's Turkish animal rescuers discovered it in the ocean, after its snout had been shaved off. They fished out the 99-lb (45 kg) turtle that was almost dead when the rescue team discovered it and helped to repair its beak after taking it back to Turkey's Dalyan Iztuzu Pamukkale University (PAU), according to engadget.

The printing industry contacted a 3D printing service provider called BTech Innovation. They helped to take the turtle's CT scans to create a beak that could be fitted correctly.

So through software, the upper and lower jaws were recreated. The resulting design was created with the help of "medical-grade titanium".

By attaching the beak surgically, the turtle is being helped to recover, after which it will be released back into the ocean.

So though it had to be hand-fed, it is only a matter of time that it recovers, and then it is hoped that it will be able to get released back into the wild, according to endgadget.

Now that sure makes it an interesting creature, but then, would you be ever able to meet it, though you know all about its existence?