Robo-turtle gets 3D printed beak after being hit by boat propeller

SCIENTISTS have created a cyborg turtle after 3D printing a titanium beak for an animal that had its jaw ripped off when it was hit by a boat propeller.

A loggerhead turtle that lost its jaw after it was hit by a boat propeller has had a new one 3D p

A LOGGERHEAD turtle that lost its beak after it was ripped off by a boat propeller has had a new one 3D printed.

The animal was taken to a rescue centre at Pamukkale University in Turkey after the accident which tore off a large section of its jaw and left it unable to feed, the UK Telegraph reported.

After staff there nursed it back to health they realised it was destined for a life in captivity unless a way could be found to build a new beak.

Accident ... The animal was taken to a rescue centre at Pamukkale University in Turkey after the accident which tore off a large section of its jaw. Picture: BTech Innovation

That’s when they approached BTech Innovation, a Turkish biotechnology company that specialises in 3D medical prosthetics, the paper said.

The company used CAT scans for the painstaking process of creating a computer model of the animal’s beak.

Afterwards a prosthetic replacement was made from titanium inside a 3D printer and attached to the turtle during a groundbreaking two and a half-hour surgery.

New technology ... The prosthetic was built inside a 3D printer. Picture: BTech Innovation

While the eye-popping result makes the animal look like some kind of turtle cyborg veterinary staff at the university must wait to see if the new prosthetic is rejected.

If not, the turtle will soon be returned to the Mediterranean.