About the Endangered Sea Turtles
Of the six species of sea-living turtles, all six are on the endangered species list. Here is a listing of all six species, and what makes them such unique, beautiful creatures.
The Green Sea Turtle
Taxonomy Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: Testudines Family: Cheloniidae Genus: Chelonia Species: mydas
The Green Sea Turtle is probably the most commonly known of all the sea turtles. He has truly become an icon of the ocean conservation movement, and is frequently photographed and painted by artists like Robert Wyland. The Green is one of the largest of all sea turtles and can reach 3feet in length and weigh up to 350 pounds full grown. The green sea turtle is the only sea turtle that eats a strictly vegetarian diet, dining on sea grasses and algae. The large amount of chlorophyll in the Green’s diet turns his body fat green, giving him not only his name, but his body coloring.
In nature, Green’s can be found in tropical waters, but have been sighted in decidedly colder waters, ranging from as far north as Massachusetts to as far Southwest as Texas, as well as in the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. To the West, they have been found all along the California coast and as far north as Alaska! They typically breed between the ages of 25 and 50 years, laying their eggs on saltwater beaches, laying an average of 135 eggs each cycle.
The Hawksbill Turtle
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: Testudines Family: Cheloniidae Genus: Eretmochelys Species: imbricate
The Hawksbill turtle reaches between 100 and 150 pounds, and about 31 inches full grown. It is called the “Hawksbill” turtle because of its uniquely shaped beak, which it uses to remove and eat its favorite meal, sea-sponges, from coral reefs. Because of this, the Hawksbill tends to live within close proximity of lush coral reefs in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans. They have been sighted along the coasts of Florida, Texas, The Gulf of Mexico, Antilles, the Virgin Islands, Brazil, and Puerto Rico.
The Kemp’s Ridley Turtle
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: Testudines Family: Cheloniidae Genus: Lepidochelys Species: kempii
The Kemp’s Ridley turtle got its name from Richard Kemp, a scientist from Key West, FL, who was the first person to submit the turtle for classification to Harvard in 1906. The Kemp’s Ridley is the smallest of all sea turtles, weighing upwards of 100 pounds and reaching approximately 24 inches at adulthood. The Kemp’s Ridley is particularly famous for its unique nesting habits. Kemp’s nest together- often in beaches along the coast of Mexico; in fact, the largest nesting groups (or arribadas) of Kemp’s Ridley’s ever recorded was 5000! That means 5000 turtles flocked to one beach and laid eggs at one time!
The Kemp’s Ridley lays approximately 200-300 eggs per season, each of which must incubate for 50-60 days before hatching. The Kemp’s Ridley is typically found around Mexico and Florida, though some have been sited as far away as Morocco, Africa!
The Leatherback Turtle
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: Testudines Family: Dermochelyidae Genus: Dermochelys Species: coriacea
The Leatherback turtle is the largest species of turtle (and, in fact, reptile!) in the world, growing up to six and a half feet in length, and weighing up to 2000 pounds! The leatherback does not have a hard shell like most turtles; rather, it has a thick leathery shell made of tough connective tissue and bone. Leatherbacks eat mostly soft oceanic organisms like jellyfish and salps, and have a spiny esophagus to help keep this soft food in place. Leatherbacks typically lay about 200-300 eggs a season, on warm tropical oceanic beaches. The leatherback is also more nomadic than other turtle species, choosing to swim across thousands of miles of ocean expanse rather than settle near shore. They typically nest along the coasts of South America and Africa, though some can be found near Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, and Florida, though some have been spotted as far north as Newfoundland, Canada. To the west, leatherbacks can be spotted in smaller numbers, but are not as common.
The Loggerhead Turtle
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: Testudines Family: Cheloniidae Genus: Caretta Species: caretta
Loggerhead turtles can reach up to 250 pounds and around 36 inches in length. They received their name from their massive heads, which are genetically engineered to accommodate their diet of hard-shelled mollusks and organisms like conchs and welks. Loggerheads are the most plentiful species of sea turtle off the United States coasts, and can be found in oceans around the world, from Mexico to the Bahamas, to Greece, Turkey, Newfoundland (Canada), the Middle East, and Australia. In the US they have been spotted in turtle-heavy areas like Florida to as far away as Washington State! They tend to nest in warmer areas, such as Florida, Oman and the Mediterranean.
The Olive Ridley Turtle
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Reptilia Order: Testudines Family: Cheloniidae Genus: Lepidochelys Species: olivacea
The Olive Ridley sea turtle is named for the rich olive color of its shell. The Olive Ridley is on the smaller side of the sea turtle spectrum, averaging about 100 pounds full grown, and reaching upwards of 31 inches in length. Of all the endangered sea turtles, the Olive is probably the most populous. Even still, there is only an estimated 800,000 females who nest each year. Like the Kemp’s Ridley, the Olive Ridley turtle also nests in arribada’s (a mass influx of turtles nesting at the same beach at the same time). Olive Ridley turtles reach sexual maturity much younger than other sea turtle species, at a mere 15 years (as opposed to the 25-35 years of other sea turtle species). During each cycle, a female olive lays about 200 eggs, which hatch after 50-60 days of incubation.
Olive Ridley’s are pelagic turtles, much like many other sea turtle species, preferring to swim around at sea, only coming ashore to nest. Their diets are extremely varied; olives will eat anything from lobster to algae to shrimp to mollusks and fish. They are aided in their quest for food by their amazing diving abilities- wherein they can reach depths of up to 500 feet! Olive’s are spotted frequently on the Atlantic side of both South America and Africa, and in the Pacific from Southern California as far south as Chile!