Gopher tortoises find new home on Florida coast after astonishing journey to flee hurricane

Everybody in the ecosystem benefits from gopher tortoises being there,' says ranger at park where the animals settled

Dozens of gopher tortoises survived a perilous sea crossing after being swept from their homes during Hurricane Helene last summer, and are enjoying a new lease of life on a remote stretch of Florida coastline.

Rangers at Fort de Soto county park near St Petersburg say that before the September storm only eight of the vulnerable species were known to be living there.