Leatherback Turtle Size report
Leatherback turtles (scientific name: Dermochelys coriacea) belong to the superfamily of sea turtles and form a leatherback turtle family. It is the largest of the extant sea turtles, second only to the three crocodiles in the extant reptiles, and the largest individual found so far.
Leatherback turtles are ectothermic reptiles that swim quickly and are highly adaptable, making them omnivores. They mainly inhabit the upper-middle and upper layers of tropical waters, distributed in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.
Unlike other sea turtles, the bony shell of the leatherback is not visible. Their shell has seven ridges running from front to back. Reading the following article will learn more interesting facts about leatherback sea turtles.
Leatherback Turtle Basics
The leatherback sea turtle is the most unique of all sea turtle species. As the only living member of the family Dermochelyidea, they are the largest living turtle species. Its distinguishing feature is its carapace, which has a smooth, leathery skin covering a flexible bone matrix. This carapace specializes in diving to extreme depths of up to 4,000 feet (1,219 meters). In addition, a unique thermoregulatory adaptation allows leatherbacks to maintain core body temperatures at these extremely cold depths.
Appearance
Like other turtles, the leatherback sea turtle has a big head and short neck. Their head width is 133-220mm. The head, limbs, and body are covered with leathery skin without horny scutellum. The body has 7 rows of longitudinal ribs on the back and 5 rows of longitudinal ribs on the abdomen. Their forelimbs are particularly well-developed. The front edge of the forelimb is 720-1010mm long, and the front edge of the hindlimb is 298-480mm long. The forelimb is about twice as long as the hindlimb.
The body and limbs of baby turtles are covered with irregular polygonal small scales, and the largest distribution is in the carapace and plastron. In adults, the scales disappear and are replaced by leathery skin. The adult is dark brown or black on the back, with yellow or white spots and a grayish-white abdomen. Baby leatherback turtles have gray-black backs, light yellow or white longitudinal ribs on the limbs, and white abdomens with black spots.
Average Size
Leatherbacks are the largest of the seven living sea turtle species, growing to more than 6.5 feet (2 meters) in length and weighing up to 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms). The shell is 1.04-1.5m long, 0.56-1m wide, and 0.3-0.5m thick.
Living Habits and Diet
Leatherback turtles live in tropical and temperate marine waters all over the world. They spend most of their lives at sea and sometimes look for prey in coastal waters. Jellyfish make up the biggest portion of their diet, but they also eat seaweed, fish, crustaceans, and other marine invertebrates. Leatherbacks have downward-pointing spines in their throat, allowing jellyfish to be swallowed but preventing them from coming back up.
Reproduction
Temperature determines the gender of the offspring, and if it is warm inside the nest, females will be born; if temperatures are cooler, males develop. Once the eggs hatch, the baby sea turtles must make it into the water and learn to fend for themselves without any care from their parents. Leatherbacks reach maturity at approximately 16 years old. Their average lifespan is unknown, but it’s thought to be at least 30 years.
Leatherback turtles have a long egg-laying period throughout the year, mainly concentrated between May-June. Female turtles will be very cautious when they go to the beach to lay their eggs and return to the ocean immediately in case of disturbance. Adult leatherbacks have few natural predators, but their eggs and newborns are preyed upon by many animals, including birds, raccoons, and crabs. Female leatherbacks tend to return to the same nesting area to lay their eggs.
Leatherback Turtle Status
One of the main reasons for the sharp decline in the number of leatherback turtles is that due to people discarding waste plastic bags in the ocean, the leatherback turtles mistakenly thought that they were jellyfish and ingested them, causing intestinal blockage and death. In the nearly 20 years from 1990 to 2009, due to changes in ocean water temperature caused by El Niño, illegal fishing by fishers, marine pollution, and local tourism development, the number of leatherback turtles has dropped by about 95%. Conservationists around the world are involved in the movement to save leatherback turtles.
