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Sea Turtles
Seabirds
Marine Mammals
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 Green Sea Turtle

Image Credit: NOAA


 Green Sea Turtle
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 National Marine Sanctuaries Where Green Sea Turtles Can Be Found:
  Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument
Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale
Fagatele Bay American Samoa (U.S.)
Gray's Reef

 Related Environmental Issues:
  Point Source - Oil Spills
Non-Point Source - Runoff
Habitat Loss
Plastics
Aquaculture
Bycatch
Climate Change

 Activities Related to Green Sea Turtles:
 

 Other Resources Related to Green Sea Turtles:
  Sea Turtle Tracking
180 KB, mpeg, audio clip
This audio clip gives some good information about sea turtle tracking.


Sea Turtles Dig the Dark
2940 KB, mpeg, video
Public Service Announcement put out by the Fish and Wildlife Service to protect sea turtle nesting habitats.





Scientific Name: Chelonia mydas

Category: Sea Turtles

What Does a Green Sea Turtle Look Like?

Green sea turtles are the largest species of sea turtles in the world. Adults can reach 90 centimeters in length and 180 kilograms in weight. This species of sea turtle gets its name from the green color of both its flesh and the fat under its shell. A notable characteristic of the green sea turtle is that its head looks too small for its body size. It only has one distinguishable set of scales in front of its eyes compared to the majority of other species of sea turtles that have two sets.

Where Do Green Sea Turtles Live, Breed and Eat?

Most green sea turtles live in the tropical regions of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Adult female turtles migrate over a thousand miles, to return to the same beach from which they hatched, to lay eggs. Females lay nests of over 100 eggs and incubate the eggs for about 60 days. There is a lot of variation in how often they nest; some sea turtles have been known to return to their nesting place from 3 to 5 times each season.

Green sea turtles prefer to live along coastlines where there are beds of seagrass and algae, the staple of their diet. When they are young hatchlings, they eat insects, worms, crustaceans, grasses, and algae. However, as adults they are strict herbivores, eating only plant material.

What Are Some Threats to the Green Sea Turtle?

The coastal areas where green sea turtles live are also popular fishing areas. Turtles are sometimes caught in gillnets, trawls, traps, longlines, and other fishing gear. In addition, green turtle eggs are a valuable delicacy. Over time, the effects of removing eggs and turtles from their nesting beaches, to use as a human food, have impacted the existing sea turtle population. Today, the endangered Green Sea Turtle is protected by law. In order to help protect this species, fishermen and scientists are working to improve fishing gear so they will not ensnare the animals and reduce human interference with their eggs and nesting sites.




Research Links Related to Green Sea Turtle:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Sponsored by:
NASA logoNational Aeronautics and
Space Administration

(NASA Award NCC5433)
NOAA logoNational Oceanic &
Atmospheric Administration

(NOAA Award NA06SEC4690006)

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