Rare turtles sighted on Cornish coast - The Pasty sells saffron cakes from Cornwall and Cornish pasties

Young leatherback turtles have been spotted along the north Cornwall coast at two locations, according to reports received by the Marine Conservation Society (MCS).

Adult leatherbacks are a common sight on the Cornish coast, but juveniles measuring less than 1m in length are rarely seen.

The first sighting was reported by a wind-surfer at Constantine Bay and the second by a surfer in Fistral Beach, Newquay.

MCS species policy office Peter Richardson said: “We were fairly sceptical when we received the first sighting because leatherbacks of this size are rarely reported in UK waters. But when we received another independent sighting from a surfer who managed to get a good look at the animal we got very excited.”

The leatherback is the largest of the marine turtles, growing up to 3m in length and weighing up to a tonne.

The public has been asked to report any further turtle sightings to Turtle, the national database of turtle sightings.

Sir Richard Branson’s business Virgin Galactic may consider using a Cornish airfield for its launch pad for space travel, it has been revealed.

Will Whitehorn, president of Virgin Galactic, which is pumping hundreds of million pounds into making space travel affordable, has said it might use RAF St Mawgan, near Newquay, as a “spaceport”.

Although the company is yet to approach the owners of the Cornish airfield, it is “one of the very few possible sites in England”, he said.

Virgin Galactic is currently building five SpaceShipTwo spacecrafts, which it plans to send more than 70 miles above the Earth.

It hopes to “bring the dream of space travel for many millions closer to reality”.

Tickets for the three-hour journey will cost £115,000. Virgin Galactic plans to launch its first flight from its main base in New Mexico, USA, in 2008.

The West Country’s beaches have excelled in a summer survey carried out by the Marine Conservation Society (MCS).

97 per cent of Cornwall and Devon’s beaches were rated as “excellent” after tests revealed a high standard of water cleanliness.

Of the 139 West Country beaches tested, only four failed to reach the highest standards and were awarded “basic” passes. These were at Ilfracombe in North Devon, Rock, near Padstow on the North Cornwall coast, Torre Abbey, in Torbay, and Teignmouth, East Devon.

Thomas Bell, the society’s coastal pollution officer, says: “It’s a repeat of last year. MCS has again concluded that about nine out of 10 UK beaches had excellent water quality up to the beginning of August. The risk to bathers’ health from sewage contamination was therefore generally low, and we see this as great news for both the marine environment and the huge numbers of UK beach visitors.

“As usual, we would urge swimmers to be aware of possible pollution after severe rain or flooding, and where pollution occurs to wait at least 24 hours after the rain stops before entering the sea.”

Earlier this summer, four more West Country beaches were awarded prestigious Blue Flag beaches for their top-class facilities, safety and cleanliness.

The Eden Project has the healthiest food of any tourist attraction in the UK, according to a new report by the Soil Association.

But most tourist attractions were failing to provide healthy food for visitors, opting for junk food instead.

The Soil Association sent a “secret mum” to 14 top attractions to test their food and drink choices.

Only the Eden Project and the Tower of London scored well, with both serving fresh fruit and drinking water.

Peter Melchett, of the the Soil Association, said venues had a responsibility to offer alternatives to junk food.

“Not to provide kids with the option of free water on a day out is scandalous,” he said.

“It is crazy not even bothering to offer fresh fruit or the choice of a healthy meal for children.”

A dozen baby cuttlefish have been born at Newquay’s Blue Reef Aquarium.

The babies, which are just over an inch long, were born from eggs laid earlier this year. The tiny eggs, known as sea grapes, started to hatch during the weekend.

Manager David Waines said: “We were hoping the eggs were viable but you can never be certain until they actually hatch. To see all the tiny babies swimming around the display is fantastic. They’re exact miniature replicas of the adults and they all seem to be doing really well.

“Some people say they look like something out of the X Files,” he added.

The babies are believed to be the fifth generation of the species to be born at the aquarium.

The cuttlefish is a close relative of the octopus. It can change its colour and body shape to match its moods. It escapes predators by releasing a cloud of ink.

Cornwall’s used to its fair share of bad weather, so nobody was much surprised when the skies took a turn for the worse this week with heavy downpours of rain and occasional thunder storms.

But residents of Helston were shocked to see a tornado appear during a storm on Friday.

Breague resident Julie Barwell said: “First of all we could hear the thunder rumbling around and the sky was really black.

“It was a very thick tunnel to start off with and it got narrower and narrower and came down but it didn’t touch the ground.

“It went back up in the sky again and then formed again and went even thinner. I thought it was definitely going to hit the ground and then it just disappeared.

“If it had been in the other direction it would have come right above us.”

The storm also caused flooding in Gulval, near Penzance, and delayed traffic at Buryas Bridge.

A Devon businessman has launched a bid to save one of the world’s most historic ships and bring her to Falmouth as a tourist attraction. HMS Carrick, the Cutty Sark’s sister ship, is the earliest surviving clipper ship and the only surving 19th Century wooden sailing passenger ship in Britain.

Property developer Tim Roper has agreed to buy HMS Carrick, which is 176 foot long and weighs 800 tonnes and is currently moored in Scotland, facing destruction.

Mr Roper said: “It is such a historical vessel and such a beautiful vessel that to scrap it would be a crime really.

“I have been up to see it and it is simply the most fantastic thing in the world. How could anyone not want to save her and restore her to her original beauty.

“I have an exclusive agreement with North Ayreshire Council to buy her and I then have to bring her back to Falmouth I think that will cost in the region of £300,000 and £400,000 so it is a big task.”

HMS Carrick was launched as the City of Adelaide in Sunderland 1864, five years before the Cutty Sark.

Originally designed to carry cargo and passengers to Australia, more than half the current population of South Australia can trace their families’ arrival to the ship.

After spells as a cargo carrier and floating isolation hospital, the Royal Navy bought her in the early 20th Century to be re-named HMS Carrick and used as a training ship.

Mr Roper is now hoping other businesses will get involved to help with the cost of the work.

A wave power scheme off the Cornish coast could lead to unsurfable waves and damage Cornwall’s surfing and tourism industries, according to a surfing group.

The British Surfing Association (BSA), which has over 10,000 members, believes the planned £20 million wave hub off St. Ives could reduce the sttrength of waves by a quarter, with damaging knock-on effects for tourism.

The BSA’s Ben Farwagi said: “Surfing is worth £100 million plus to the economy of Cornwall - will the Regional Development Agency fill the financial gap when these tourists fail to return?

“We approve of the wave hub and the technology in principle, but remain fearful of near-shore surface devices which could well have far-reaching and damaging effects that may be very difficult to reverse.”

However, supporters of the scheme, one of the first of its kind in the world, say it could supply enough energy for 5,000 homes and create up to 1,800 jobs.

Steve Micklewright, of the WWF, said: “It could be a blue-print for the way future marine projects of this kind are developed - especially as there are plans for a string of bigger farms along the Westcountry coast.”

The Government will look at the plans over the next few months to decide whether to give it the go-ahead.

A Cornish shark conservationist is organising the UK’s first cage dives to look for sharks.

Shark Cornwall will lead expeditions in search of for Blue and Porbeagle sharks throughout the summer.

The trips, which cost £85, leave from Padstow and Looe and are being run as a pilot of a longer-term eco-tourism venture which Richard Peirce, the organiser, hopes will promote shark conservation and boost Cornish tourism.

He said: “I am primarily a shark conservationist. Part of our job is to get some sense of sharks to the public and politicians.

“We are killing them at a huge rate, there is virtually no real threat from sharks to humans, the threat is entirely the other way round.
hopes the venture will promote their conservation and boost the county’s tourism.

British waters contain 33 different species of shark, of which Blue and Mako are considered dangerous to man.

Cage diving for sharks is popular in countries like South Africa where it boosts
tourism, but overfishing has damaged shark numbers here.

“I am going to have to work much harder than I would have done 30 or 40 years ago to produce sharks for people to see,” said Mr. Peirce.

“There is massive over-fishing, we are killing them long before they can reproduce.

“One hundred million sharks a year is the generally kicked-around figure that are being taken out, the major reason is so their fins can be put in bowls of soup.”

For more information about the trips visit the Shark Cornwall website.

Prince Charles opened his home for public tours, today, for the the fourth summer in a row.

Fans of the Duke of Cornwall got the chance to explore Clarence House in central London, which has been Charles’ home since 2003.

The 19th Century property was formerly the home of the Queen Mother, until her death in 2002, and still houses her collection of art and furniture.

Clarence House was designed in the 1820s by architect John Nash for the Duke of Clarence, later King William 4th, and was build for a little over £22,000.

Queen Elizabeth II lived there after her marriage to Prince Philip in 1947.

Charles, 57, is at the Castle of Mey, his holiday home on the northeastern tip of Scotland, which he also inherited from his grandmother.