Sea turtle

Sea turtles (Chelonioidea) are turtles found in all the world's oceans except the Arctic Ocean, and some species travel between oceans. The term is US English. In British English they are simply called “turtles”; fresh-water chelonians are called “terrapins” and land chelonians are called tortoises.

The earliest known turtles are from the Middle Jurassic. This makes turtles the oldest surviving reptile groups: they are more ancient than snakes or crocodiles. 

There are seven species of sea turtle: Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, the olive Ridley, the flat back, the green, the loggerhead, the hawk's bill and the leatherback. 

All but the leatherback are in the family Chelonioidea. The leatherback belongs to the family Dermochelyidae and is its only member. The leatherback sea turtle is the largest, measuring six or seven feet (2 m) in length at maturity, and three to five feet (1 to 1.5 m) in width, weighing up to 2000 pounds (907.18 kg) (about 900 kg).  Most other species are smaller, being two to four feet in length (0.5 to 1 m) and proportionally less wide. The flatback turtle is found only on the northern coast of Australia.

 References 

 Further reading 
Spotila, James R. 2004. Sea turtles: a complete guide to their biology, behavior, and conservation. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. 
Davidson, Osha Gray. 2001. Fire in the turtle house: the green sea turtle and the fate of the ocean. United States: United States of Public Affairs. 
Witherington, Blair E. 2006. Sea turtles: an extraordinary natural history of some uncommon turtles.

 Other websites 

 SWOT – The state of the world's sea turtles – The most up-to-date information on global sea turtle populations
 Oceana scientists are tracking turtles in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic to find out more about their habits in the deep sea
 Conserving Turtles on a Global Scale
 Underwater video  of turtles in the Red Sea, Egypt
  Preserving Turtles 

Category:Turtles
Category:Marine reptiles