UPDATED 2.38pm A rare turtle washed up on a beach in Hawke's Bay, has been safely transported to her new home in Auckland.

The olive ridley turtle was found by a Blackhead Beach resident, in southern Hawke's Bay.

The turtle is normally found in the warmer waters of the Pacific Ocean, with their usual breeding site in Costa Rica.

It's believed to be the first ever olive ridley turtle seen in the bay.

Staff at the National Aquarium of New Zealand looked after the female turtle for the night, and a senior keeper has now transported her to Auckland Zoo for specialist care.

Aquarium manager Rob Yarrall said the turtle had the 'wow' factor for staff.

He said never in the history of the Aquarium have they had one of those before.

Auckland Zoo vet Dr Melanie Leech said they're waiting for results from blood samples but he's very flat and got a lot of fluid under his skin, which isn't a good sign.

"The only real inkling is that things are not looking good for him but we still think it's still worth trying all that we can to save him."

Ms Leech said he's even struggling to pull his head up to breath, so they're crossing every finger that he improves.