The Jardine River Painted turtle, native to Queensland's Cape York, has not been formally sighted since 1989.

But Apudthama Cape York rangers and scientists from Origin Energy have managed to trap no less than 24 Jardine River turtles while on a remote training exercise over the past fortnight.

The turtles, of different sizes and sexes, were weighed and measured, before being released back into the wild.

Peta Standley from the Cape York Natural Resource Management Board said 14 turtles were found in one location last week and another 10 were found at a different location this week.

"The next thing to do is to try to get some tracking devices on them and work out where they're actually going and if they are going into the main river and tributaries in the dry season," Ms Standley said.

She said the small reptiles - about the size of an adult male palm - were known as painted turtles for their striking red and yellow shell.

"They are a slender, short-neck turtle and have a white stripe on their cheek. Their chest plate is a crimson red that's almost fluorescent," she said.

"When they're juveniles they're quite bright, but as they get older their shell becomes pinker.

"They've also got quite substantial webbing and claws on their flippers, but they're still very pretty and very cute. They are really unique."

Ms Standley said it was the second year Origin workers had joined rangers to actively search for the turtles.

"They didn't find any the first year, but this year we targeted the areas a lot better and used different trapping methods."

She said Origin and other partners in the program, including the council and state government, would form a steering committee to decide how best to manage the species and ensure its survival.

Feral pigs are currently the greatest threat to the turtles, which are thought to have arrived in Australia from their native Papua New Guinea with the last sea level rise.

"We're looking at erecting temporary fencing to stop the pigs foraging for turtle eggs in the wet season," she said.

Indigenous head ranger Warren Strevens said the turtles were sacred to at least one of the Aboriginal clans in the region.

"They've got a storyline about that turtle as well, so there's a lot of significance in this find for the local region," he told ABC News.

Origin regional manager Rob Hart, who has been involved in previous attempts with rangers to scientifically document the species, said the discovery was "tremendous news".

"We're very proud to have worked with the local rangers to confirm the turtle still exists," Mr Hart said.

"There have been unsuccessful attempts over several decades to locate this rare turtle and I believe the species was about to be added to the 'Endangered' list."

James Cook University researcher Jason Schaffer said the iconic species was "one of the most spectacular turtles in Australia".

"That's awesome that they have been found and all of us turtle nerds are extremely happy with the news," he told the ABC.