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Green Sea Turtle

Green sea turtles are so named because a) their shells are green; b) their body fat is green; or c)
hiding in seagrass makes them appear green. The answer is b. The strictly herbivorous diet of the
adults turns their fat green. Now theres an excuse to not
eat your spinach!
Green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) can grow to 500
pounds. Their light armor and powerful flippers help them
swim far and fast. Oxygen reserves allow them to dive
without surfacing for 30 minutes and even sleep
underwater for more than two hours without breathing.
They can also cry, not to express sadness, but to shed
excess salt through the eyes.
When females mate every few years, they must return to
land several times to lay eggs. Skilled navigators, they amazingly voyage hundredseven
thousandsof miles to revisit their own birthplace as a nesting This feat is one of the
animal kingdoms greatest mysteries. After hatching, the 1-ounce babies collectively scrape
their way out of the nest, waiting for nighttime when safe to emerge. Then they head for the
brightest horizon to find the oceanif they dont get eaten or lost first. Only an estimated one in
1,000 will survive to adulthood.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lists green sea turtles as threatened. Their greatest danger?
Humans. Artificial lights confuse the ocean-bound babies, causing them to lose their way. Adults
are exploited for food, oil, leather and jewelry. Real estate developm liminates their nesting
habitat. Castoff plastic bags, fishing line and other can suffocate, strangle, or otherwise
harm the animals. And there are no international laws o protect wild populations. They may
hatch in a safe zone, then migrate to where they can b lessly hunted.
Hawksbill sea turtle
hawksbill sea turtle
Hawksbill sea turtle
The ( ) is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging
to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant speciesin the genus . The species has
a worldwide distribution, with Atlantic and Pacific subspecies. is the Atlantic
subspecies, while is found in the Indo-Pacific region.
[2]
The hawksbill's appearance is similar to that of other marine turtles. It has a generally flattened
body shape, a protective carapace, and flipper-like arms, adapted for swimming in the open
ocean. is easily distinguished from other sea turtles by its p, curving beak with
prominent tomium, and the saw-like appearance of its shell margins. Hawksbill shells slightly
change colors, depending on water temperature. While this turtle lives part of its life in the open
ocean, it spends more time in shallow lagoonsand coral reefs.
Human fishing practices threaten populations with extinction. The World Conservation
Union classifies the hawksbill as critically endangered.
[1]
Hawksbill shells were the primary source
of tortoiseshell material used for decorative purposes. The Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species outlaws the capture and trade of hawksbill sea turtles and products
derived from them.
Eretmochelys imbricata
E. i. imbricata
E. i. bissa
E. imbricata
the turtle
Eretmochelys
Leatherback sea turtle
Anatomy and physiology
Leatherback turtles have the most hydrodynamic body design of any sea turtle, with a large,
teardrop-shaped body. A large pair of front flippers to power the turtles through the water. Like
other sea turtles, the leatherback has flattened forelimbs adapted for swimming in the open
ocean. Claws are absent from both pairs of flippers. The leatherback's flippers are the largest in
proportion to its body among extant sea turtles. Leatherback's front flippers can grow up 2.7
metres (8.9 ft) in large specimens, the largest flippers (even in comparison to its body) of any sea
turtle.
The leatherback has several characteristics that distinguish it from other sea turtles. Its most
notable feature is the lack of a bony carapace. Instead of scutes, it has thick, leathery skin with
embedded minuscule osteoderms. Seven distinct ridges rise from the carapace, crossing from
the anterior to posterior margin of the turtle's back. Leatherbacks are unique among reptiles in
that their scales lack -keratin. The entire turtle's dorsal surface is colored dark grey to black, with
a scattering of white blotches and spots. Demonstrating countershading, the turtle's underside is
lightly colored.
[7][8]
Instead of teeth, the leatherback turtle has points on the tomiumof its upper lip, with backwards
spines in its throat to help it swallow food and to stop its prey escaping once caught.
Size of leatherback compared to human
adults average 11.75m (3.35.7ft) in carapace length, 1.832.2m (6.0
7.2 ft) in total length and weigh 250 to 700kg (550 to 1,540lb).
[7][9]
In the Caribbean, the mean
size of adults was reported at 384kg (847lb) in weight and 1.55m (5.1 ft) along the curve of the
carapace.
[10]
The largest ever found, however, was over 3 metres (9.8 ft) from head to tail,
including a carapace length of over 2.2 metres (7.2ft), and weighed 916 kilograms (2,019lb).
[11]
That specimen was found on a beach on the west coast o Wales.
[12]
The leatherback turtle is
scarcely larger than any other sea turtle upon hatching, as they average 61.3mm (2.41 in) in
carapace length and weigh around 46g (1.6 oz) when freshly hatched.
[10]
exhibits a suite of anatomical characteristics believed to be associated
with a life in cold waters, including an extensive cov of brown adipose tissue,
[13]
temperature independent swimming muscles,
[14]
counter-current heat exchangers between the
large front flippers and the core body, as well as an e network of counter-current heat
exchangers surrounding the trachea.
[15]
Dermochelys coriacea
Dermochelys coriacea
Olive ridley sea turtle
Description
The olive ridley is a small sea turtle, with an adult carapace length averaging 60 to 70cm.
[3]
The
heart-shaped carapace is characterized by four pairs of pore-bearing inframarginal scutes on
the bridge, two pairs of prefrontals, and up to 9 lateral scutes per side. Olive ridleys are unique in
that they can have variable and asymmetrical lateral scute counts ranging from five to 9 plates
on each side, with six to eight being most commonly observed.
[3]
Each side of the carapace has
1214 marginal scutes. The carapace is flattened dorsally and highest anterior to the bridge. It
has a mediumsized, broad head that appears triangular from above. The head's concave sides
are most obvious on the upper part of the short snout. It has paddle-like forelimbs, each having
two anterior claws. The upperparts are grayish green to olive in color, but sometimes appear
reddish due to algae growing on the carapace. The bridge and hingeless plastron of an adult
varies from greenish white in younger individuals to a creamy yellow in older specimens.
[3][4]
Hatchlings are dark gray with a pale yolk scar, but appear all black when wet.
[3]
Carapace
length ranges from 37 to 50 mm. A thin, white line borders the carapace, as well as the trailing
edge of the fore and hind flippers.
[4]
Both hatchlings and juveniles have serrated posterior
marginal scutes, which become smooth with age. J uveniles also have three dorsal keels; the
central longitudinal keel gives younger turtles a serrated profile, which remains until sexual
maturity is reached.
[3]
Olive ridleys rarely weigh over 50 kg (110 lb). A study in Oaxaca, Mexico, reported a sample of
adults ranged from 25 to 46 kg; adult females weighed average of 35.45 kg (n=58), while
adult males weighed significantly less, averaging 33.00kg (n=17). Hatchlings usually weigh
between 12.0 and 23.3 g. Adults are somewhat sexually dimorphic. Mature males have longer
and thicker tails, which are used for copulation,
[3]
and the presence of enlarged and hooked
claws on the males' front flippers allow them to grasp the female carapace during copulation.
Males also have longer, more tapered carapaces than fe les, which have round, dome-like
carapaces.
[3]
Males also have more concave plastrons, believed to be another adaptation for
mating. The plastrons of males may also be softer than emales.
[4]
Introduction
Assalamualaikum.and very good morning to my beloved teacher, Pn. Aminah, and my
dearest friends. This is my partner, Monisha and I am Farisha Fairuz. Today, we will present to all of
you a very interesting facts abaut four species of turtles.