A Russian scientist claims to have created remote controlled turtles for spying missions.

Alexei Burikov, head of the biology department at Rostov-on-Don State Pedagogical University, said a human controller could direct the turles through devices fitted to their shells.



The device sent vibrations through the shell to the turtle which could be trained to change direction.



The scientist added that a tiny camera fixed to the turtle’s shell could relay reconnaissance pictures of an area to a command and control centre.



Mr Burikov said turtles could be used to perform a whole range of dangerous operations, from placing bombs in an enemy HQ to depositing high tech recording devices.



But the invention could be used for non-military purposes as well, he told Russian media.



“Monitoring could be conducted for both environmental and defence purposes,” he said.



Turtles could be used to observe other wildlife in a way that no human would ever be able to do, he added.



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