DESPITE being small in stature, two turtles are causing big problems in a Worcester pond.

After first being made aware of two yellow-bellied slider turtles living in Lyppard Grange Pond last winter, Warwick Neale, the community engagement manager for Cleaner and Greener Services at Worcester City Council, has been trying to catch them.

The turtles are believed to have been dumped in the pond in Warndon Villages by their previous owner, and the fear is that they may eat the protected great crested newts that live in the pond, which is a site of national Scientific Interest and a Special Area of Conservation.

"We've been out on the water in boats trying to catch them in our nets, but they are just too fast for us. It's a large volume of water so the turtles just dive to the bottom of the pond when they see us coming and then we're stuck," Mr Neale said.

"It's getting to the point where we may need to get the fire service to drain the pond if we can't catch them."

Operations to catch the turtles began properly in August after Clive Longstaff at Aquatics and Reptiles in St John's said he would be able to find a home for them.

Mr Neale added: "We needed to know that someone could house them because we couldn't just dump them somewhere once caught. Clive's team from the shop have been out with us trying to catch them but we've not had much luck yet. We're trying to work out whether the turtles will go in to hibernation soon, and then we won't be able to catch them until next year. If they aren't going to hibernate we will probably have to drain the pond."

Mr Longstaff, who set up Aquatics and Reptiles 31 years ago, said he was more than happy to lend a hand.

"We've been called to some interesting things over the years, such as catching snakes and dealing with various lizards and fish that have been left in homes when the owners have moved, but we've never been asked to catch turtles before. We're happy to help, it's just unfortunate that people let them free in these ponds because they don't want to care for them anymore, or because they realise they don't know how to care for them," he said.