Three turtles dumped in car park

The turtles are being cared for at the aquarium

Three pet turtles have been found abandoned in a supermarket car park in Portsmouth.

The yellow bellied turtles were discovered by a shopper at Sainsbury's, in Commercial Road, inside a plastic box which was partly filled with water.

They were taken to the Blue Reef Aquarium in Southsea where they are being cared for.

The aquarium said that the abandonment highlighted the "growing problem" with exotic pets in the UK.

Jenna MacFarlane, from Blue Reef Aquarium, said the reptiles appeared to be in a "good condition".

'Aggressive invaders'

"The container they were in had some food and water in it, but it really was a very irresponsible thing to do," she said.

"Terrapins can start out about the size of a box of matches.

"Within a few short years though they can reach the size of a dinner plate or more and that's when people start abandoning them.

"Many of the country's lakes have become dumping grounds for exotic amphibians, and that is posing a potential threat to native species of wildlife which simply can't cope with sharing their habitat with these aggressive invaders," she added.

Terrapins and turtles can live more than 50 years.