(Redirected from Green Sea Turtle)
:''This page redirects from Chelonia, which is the genus name of this turtle, but has also been used for the order
Testudines of all turtles and tortoises.
'''Chelonia mydas''', commonly known as the 'green turtle' is a large
sea turtle belonging to the family
Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the
genus '''Chelonia'''.
[1] The
range of the species extends throughout
tropical and
subtropical seas around the world, with two distinct populations in the
Atlantic and
Pacific Oceans.
The green turtle is the quintessential
sea turtle, possessing a dorsoventrally-flattened body covered by a large, teardrop-shaped
carapace and a pair of large, paddle-like
flippers. Despite the turtle's common name, it is lightly-colored all around while its carapace's hues range from olive-brown to black in Eastern Pacific green turtles. The turtle is actually named for the greenish coloration of its fat and flesh. Unlike other members of its family such as the
hawksbill and
loggerhead turtles, ''Chelonia mydas'' is mostly
herbivorous. The adults are commonly found in shallow lagoons, feeding mostly on various species of
seagrass.
Like other sea turtles, green turtles are known to
migrate long distances between their feeding grounds and the beaches they hatched from. Many islands worldwide have been called
Turtle Islands primarily for the large amounts of green turtles that nest on their beaches each year. Female turtles dredge themselves onto beaches and lay eggs in nests that they dig during the night. After a period of time, hatchlings emerge from the nests and head for the water. Those that survive grow to
maturity and live to a maximum of eighty years.
As a species recognized as
endangered by the
IUCN and
CITES, ''Chelonia mydas'' is protected from exploitation in most countries worldwide. It is illegal to collect, harm or kill individual turtles. In addition, many countries have implemented various laws and ordinances to protect individual turtles and turtle nesting areas within their jurisdiction. However, the turtles' populations are still in danger because of several human practices. In some countries, the turtles are still
hunted for their flesh and their eggs are collected from nests and eaten as a delicacy.
Pollution indirectly harms the turtle populations both on the population and the individual scale. Many turtles die as a result of being
caught in fishermen's nets and drowning. Finally,
habitat loss due to human
development is a major reason for the loss of green turtle nesting beaches.
Anatomy and morphology
Immature Hawaiian ''C. mydas''.
The appearance of the green turtle is that of a typical sea turtle. ''Chelonia mydas'' has a dorsoventrally-flattened body, a beaked head at the end of a short neck, and paddle-like arms well-adapted for swimming.
[2] Adult green turtles are known to grow up to one-and-a-half meters long. While individuals have been caught that reached weights of up to 315 kilograms, the average weight of mature individuals is around 200 kilograms. The largest ''Chelonia mydas'' ever recorded weighed 395 kilograms (871 pounds).
[3]
Anatomically, there are a few characteristics that distinguish the green turtle from the other members of its family. Unlike the closely-related
hawksbill turtle, the green turtle's snout is very short and its
beak is unhooked. The horny sheath of the turtle's upper jaw possesses a slightly-denticulated edge while its lower jaw has stronger,
serrated, more defined denticulation. The dorsal surface of the turtle's head has a single pair of prefrontal scales. Its carapace is composed of five central
scutes flanked by four pairs of lateral scutes. Underneath, the green turtle has four pairs of infra-marginal scutes covering the area between the turtle's
plastron and its shell. Mature ''C. mydas'' front appendages have only a single claw (as opposed to the hawksbill's two), although a second claw is sometimes prominent in young specimens.
[4]
The
carapace of the turtle is known to have various color patterns that change over time. Hatchlings of ''C. mydas'', like those of other marine turtles, have mostly black carapaces and light-colored plastrons. Carapaces of juveniles are dark brown to olive, while those of mature adults are either entirely brown, spotted or marbled with variegated rays. Underneath, the turtle's plastron is hued yellow. ''C. mydas'' limbs are dark-colored and lined with yellow, and are usually marked with a large dark brown spot in the center of each appendage.
[5][6]
Distribution
The
range of ''Chelonia mydas'' extends throughout
tropical and
subtropical oceans worldwide. There are two major
subpopulations of ''C. mydas'', the Atlantic and the Eastern Pacific subpopulations.
''C. mydas'' distribution. Yellow circles represent minor nesting locations. Red circles are known major nesting sites.
Atlantic subpopulation
A ''C. mydas'' swimming amongst a
Caribbean coral reef.
''Chelonia mydas'' can generally be found throughout the entire
Atlantic Ocean. Individuals have been spotted as far north as
Canada in the Western Atlantic and the
British Isles in the east. The subpopulation's southern range is known until past the southern tip of
Africa in the east and
Argentina in the Western Atlantic. The major nesting sites in the region can be found on various islands in the
Caribbean, along the eastern shores of the continental
United States, the eastern coast of the
South American continent and most notably, on isolated islands in the
South Atlantic.
In the Caribbean, major nesting sites have been identified on
Aves Island, the
U.S. Virgin Islands,
Puerto Rico and
Costa Rica. One of the most important nesting grounds for the region's green turtle population can be located in
Tortuguero in Costa Rica.
[7] In fact, a great majority of the Caribbean region's ''C. mydas'' population hails from a few beaches in Tortuguero.
[8] Within United States waters, minor nesting sites have been noted in the states of
Georgia,
North and
South Carolina and all along the east coast of
Florida.
Hutchinson Island in particular is a major nesting area in Florida waters. Notable nesting locations in South America include secluded beaches in
Surinam. In the Southern Atlantic Ocean, the most notable nesting grounds for ''Chelonia mydas'' are found on the island of
Ascension.
On that particular island, annual nesting occurs in the volume of around 6,000 to 15,000 individual turtle nests.
In contrast with the sporadic distribution of their nesting sites, ''Chelonia mydas'' feeding grounds are much more widely distributed throughout the region. Important feeding grounds for the green sea turtle in
Florida include Indian River Lagoon, the
Florida Keys,
Florida Bay,
Homosassa,
Crystal River and
Cedar Key.
Indo-Pacific subpopulation
In the
Pacific, the range of the green turtle reaches as far north as the southern coast of
Alaska and as far south as
Chile in the east. The turtle's distribution in the Western Pacific is known as far north as
Japan and even southern parts of
Russia's Pacific coast and as far south as the the northern tip of
New Zealand and a few islands further south of
Tasmania. The turtles can be found throughout the entire range of the
Indian Ocean.
[10]
Significant nesting grounds are scattered throughout the entire region. Pacific green turtle nesting grounds are found in
Mexico, the
Hawaiian Islands, the
South Pacific, the northern coast of
Australia and
Southeast Asia. In the Indian Ocean, major nesting colonies have been recorded in
India,
Pakistan and other coastal countries in the region. A few nesting grounds have been reported along the east coast of the
African continent including some islands in the waters around
Madagascar.
East Pacific green turtles nesting grounds are well-studied all along the
Mexican coast. These turtles have been found to feed in seagrass pastures in the
Gulf of California.
[11] Green turtles belonging to the distinct Hawaiian subpopulation are known to nest at the protected
French Frigate Shoals some 800 kilometers to the west of the Hawaiian Islands.
[12] In the
Philippines, green turtles are known to nest in the
Turtle Islands along with closely-related
hawksbill turtles.
[13] There are also a few nesting beaches in
Indonesia, one of them in the Meru Betiri National Reserve in
East Java. The green sea turtles on the
Great Barrier Reef have two
genetically distinct populations; one in the Northern Great Barrier Reef, and the other in the Southern half of the reef. Within the reef, twenty separate locations consisting of small islands and
cays were identified as nesting sites for either population of ''C. mydas''. Of these, the most important green turtle nesting ground was identified to be on
Raine Island.
[14][15]
Farther west into the Indo-Pacific, major nesting sites can be found along the coast of
Karachi,
Pakistan facing the
Arabian Sea. Some specific beaches along the area, such as "Hawksbay" and "Sandspit", are among the most major nesting grounds for the region's ''C. mydas'' subpopulation. Sandy beaches along
Sindh and
Balochistan are also known green turtle nest sites. Some 25 kilometers off the Pakistani coast,
Astola island is another known nesting beach.
[16][17][18]
Ecology and life history
As a large and well-protected organism, an adult green turtle has few enemies and even fewer predators. Only human beings and the larger
sharks are known to feed on ''C. mydas'' adults. Specifically,
tiger sharks (''
Galeocerdo cuvier'') are known predators of adult green turtles in
Hawaiian waters.
The juvenile turtles and recently-emerged hatchlings have a lot more predators, including
crabs, small
mammals and
shorebirds.
Habitat
Green turtles alternate between three
habitat type depending on their current
life history stage. Nesting beaches are where the turtles return to lay eggs. Mature turtles spend most of their time in coastal, shallow waters with lush
seagrass beds. Juvenile turtles are known to spend a majority of their juvenile stage in convergence zones within the open ocean.
[19] Sea grass meadows within inshore bays, lagoons and shoals are common locations where ''Chelonia mydas'' can often be found. This particular species is known to be very selective about their feeding and mating sites and entire generations will often alternately migrate between the same feeding and nesting areas.
Feeding ecology
Adult ''Chelonia mydas'' is primarily
herbivorous. It feeds almost-exclusively on various species of
sea grasses and
seaweed.
They have been observed feeding on various species of
macroalgae, specifically ''
Caulerpa'', ''
Turbinaria'', ''
Spyridia'', ''
Codium'', and ''
Ulva''.
[20] While mature green turtles are entirely herbivorous, juveniles are known to subsist on a plethora of marine invertebrates. Select preferred prey items include smaller
cnidarians and
crustaceans. Their digestive intake of plant matter grows larger as they age, until as mature adults they become
obligate herbivores.
While it has been previously stated that green turtles do not feeding while at their respective nesting areas, it has been shown that
gravid turtles do infact feed while in the waters surrounding their nesting grounds.
Life history
Female green turtle nesting on a beach.
Unlike most sea turtles, which spend most of their adult lives in the ocean, Pacific green turtles are known to willingly crawl onto secluded beaches during the day to bask in the sun.
Green turtles are known to migrate long distances in-between their chosen feeding sites and where they hatched. Some ''C. mydas'' are known to swim distances of greater than 2,600 kilometers to reach their spawning grounds. Mature turtles will often return to the same exact beach from which they hatched from. Individual female green turtles usually mate every two to four years. Males on the other hand, are known to make the trip to their breeding areas every year.
[21] As with many species that are found across a wide range of
latitudes, mating seasons vary between populations. For ''Chelonia mydas'' in the
Caribbean, mating season is from June to September.
In the tropics, green turtles are known to nest throughout the year, with some subpopulations preferring particular times of the year. In
Pakistan,
Indian Ocean ''C. mydas'' nest all year-round but prefer to nest during the months of July and December.
Green turtles reproduce in the typical way that marine turtles do so. Female turtles control mating; males cannot force females to mate. While it does not seem to offer increased survival among the hatchlings, a few green turtle populations are known to undergo
polyandry when mating.
[22] After mating in the water, the females haul themselves onto the beach above the high tide line. Upon reaching a suitable nesting site, the gravid female then digs a hole with her hind flippers and deposits a number of eggs in the nest. The number of eggs laid per litter depends on the age of the female and differs from species to species, but ''C. mydas'' clutches range between 100 to 200 eggs. After laying eggs, the female then covers the nest with sand and returns to the sea.
''C. mydas'' hatchling.
After around 45 to 75 days, the eggs hatch. As with other marine turtles, ''C. mydas'' eggs hatch during the night and the newly-emerged turtles
instinctively head directly towards the water's edge. This undoubtedly is the most dangerous time in a turtle's life, as the hatchlings make their way to the water, various predators such as
gulls and
crabs pick off many turtles. A significant percentage of turtle hatchlings never make it to the ocean. Just like other sea turtles, little is known of the life history of juvenile green sea turtles. It is speculated that they take twenty to fifty years to reach
mature size.
Individuals of the species are known to live up to eighty years in the wild.
Green turtles undergo an
arribada, an annual mass nesting of sea turtles. One of the most famous mass-nesting sites for this species is located on
Ascension Island in the
South Atlantic. Each year on the island, thousands of ''C. mydas'' create between 6,000 and 15,000 nests. These particular turtles are among the largest green turtles in the world, many more than a meter in length and weighing up to 300 kilograms.
Evolutionary history
The green turtle is a member of the
tribe Chelonini. In a study conducted in 1993, the status of the
genus ''Chelonia'' with respect to the other marine turtles was clarified. The
carnivorous ''
Eretmochelys'' (hawksbill), ''
Caretta'' (loggerhead) and ''
Lepidochelys'' (Ridley) were confirmed in the tribe
Carettini.
Herbivorous ''Chelonia'' were found distinct enough to warrant their status while establishing that ''
Natator'' was further-removed than previously believed.
[23]
Etymology and taxonomic history
The species was originally described by
Linnaeus in 1758 as ''Testudo mydas''.
[24] In 1868,
Bocourt described a particular species of sea turtle as ''Chelonia agassizii'' (''Chelonia agassizi'' is a commonly-cited misspelling of this taxon).
[25] This "species" was referred to as the ''black sea turtle''.
[26] However, research determined that the "black sea turtle" was not genetically distinct from ''C. mydas'' and thus
taxonomically not a separate species.
[27] These two separate species were then united in the same species, ''Chelonia mydas'' and were given subspecies status. ''C. mydas mydas'' referred to the originally described population while ''C. mydas agassizi'' referred to the Pacific population.
[28][29] This subdivision was later determined to be invalid and all members of the species were then designated ''Chelonia mydas''.
The oft-mentioned name ''C. agassizi'' remains an invalid
junior synonym of ''C. mydas''.
The species'
common name is derived not from any particular
green external coloration of the turtle. The green turtle is so-called because of the greenish color of the turtle's flesh, specifically the
calipee and the
cartilage that connects its' shell to the rest of the turtle's body.
[30]
As a species found worldwide, the green turtle is called differently in some
languages and
dialects. In
Hawaii, the native
Hawaiian word ''honu'' is used to refer to this species.
In the
Philippines, the blanket-term ''pawikan'' is used to describe all marine turtle species including this one.
Importance to Humans
While in most countries, it is now illegal to hunt ''Chelonia mydas'' along with the other members of its family, sea turtles continue to be caught worldwide. Along with other sea turtles, ''Chelonia mydas'' are caught both
intentionally and
unintentionally in select regions of the world. Prior to the implementation of various protection measures, the turtles' skin was
tanned and used as
leather for
handbags, especially in
Hawaii.
In
ancient China, the flesh of sea turtles including and especially ''C. mydas'' was considered a culinary delicacy.
[31] Particularly for this species, the turtle's
calipee,
fat and
cartilage are sought as ingredients for making
turtle soup.
In
Indonesia, sea turtle eggs are a popular delicacy in
Java. However, the turtle's flesh is regarded as ''
ḥarām'' or "unclean" under
Islamic law (Islam is the primary religion in the region). In
Bali, the demand for turtle meat to satisfy traditional consumption at ceremonial and religious feasts has encouraged the harvesting of turtles in the furthest and remotest parts of the
Indonesian archipelago.
[32] Bali has been importing sea turtles since the 1950s as its own turtle supplies were said to be severely depleted.
[33] The ethnic
Balinese do not eat the eggs, which are instead sold to local
Muslims. The former traditional uses of turtle on Bali were once deemed sustainable, but have been questioned considering a vastly larger human population and thus greater demand. The harvest was until recently described to be the most intensive in the world.
Before the inclusion of the turtles in the
Endangered Species Act and the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, commercial farms such as the Cayman Turtle Farm in the
West Indies bred the turtles for commercial sale. The farms held as many as 100,000 turtles at any one time. When the markets were closed due to protection measures, some farms went bankrupt and most drastically reduced their stock. The farms have since been converted into tourist attractions with around 10,000 turtles at any one time.
Conservation
.jpg)
A Hawaiian ''C. mydas''.
There are various threats to the species' survival. Direct and directed threats to individual turtles include
hunting of turtles for their flesh and shells and the harvesting of their eggs. More prevalent indirect threats include casualties due to turtles being injured by boat propellers, being caught as
bycatch by fishermen's nets without
TEDs,
pollution and
habitat destruction. Pollution effects would include direct-impact disturbances such as
effluent from
harbors near nesting sites. Habitat loss usually occurs due to human development of their nesting areas. Urban development of beaches, reclamation and an increased level of tourism are examples of such development.
An infectious
tumor-causing disease known as
fibropapillomatosis is also a problem in some green turtle populations. The disease kills a sizeable fraction of the turtles that it infects, though some turtles seem to be resistant to the disease.
Because of these, the many populations of ''Chelonia mydas'' worldwide are in various states of vulnerability. The
Mediterranean green turtle population is particularly listed as critically endangered.
In the
East Pacific, green turtle subpopulations in
Hawaii and
Southern California have been designated
threatened. Specific
Mexican subpopulations are listed as
endangered. In the
Caribbean, the
Florida nesting population is also listed as endangered. In the
Indian Ocean, the
World Wide Fund for Nature has labeled nesting populations in
Pakistan as "rare and declining."
Global conservation initiatives
Since 2004, ''Chelonia mydas'' has been classified by the
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as ''
endangered''. It is listed as classified under the ''EN A2bd'' criteria, which essentially states that the species' wild populations are facing a high risk of
extinction because of several. These factors include a probably reduction of more than 50% in the size of the worldwide ''C. mydas'' population over the past decade. This was determined by using abundance indices and by projecting a potential level of exploitation of the species' numbers.
[36]
_O'ahu.JPG)
A green turtle resting on the sand on the island of
O'ahu.
The species has been officially classified as an
endangered species since 1982, when the
International Union for the Conservation of Nature listed ''Chelonia mydas'' as endangered.
[37] Throughout various reassessments and subsequent publications, the conservation status of the turtle has not changed over time. The 1986,
[38] 1988,
[39] 1990
[40] and 1994 editions of the
IUCN Red List retained the species' endangered status.
[41] In the landmark 1996 edition of the Red List, ''C. mydas'' remained listed as an endangered species.
[42] In 2001, a petition was filed to delist the species as an endangered species. At the time, the species was listed as endangered under the strict ''EN A1abd'' criteria. The
petitioner claimed that at the time, there was ample evidence to suggest that some green turtle populations were large, stable and in some cases, increasing. The IUCN Standards and Petitions Subcommittee determined in a ruling that visual counts of nesting females could not be considered as "direct observation" and thus downgraded the species' status as ''EN A1bd'' - retaining the turtle's ''endangered'' status.
[43]
As a member of the family ''
Cheloniidae'', ''Chelonia mydas'' is listed on Appendix I of the
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species as of May 3, 2007.
[44] The species was originally listed on Appendix II in 1975. The entire family was put onto Appendix I in 1977, with the exception of the
Australian population of ''C. mydas''. In 1981, all populations of the species were brought into Appendix I, including the Australian population. As covered by Appendix I of CITES, it is illegal to import or export, kill, capture or harass green turtles.
[45]
Country-specific conservation initiatives
In addition to management by global entities such as the
IUCN and
CITES, specific countries around the world whose jurisdiction turtle nesting and feeding grounds fall under have taken specific conservation efforts in order to protect the species.
Eco-tourism has been one specific thrust in
Sabah,
Borneo. The island of
Pulau Selingan is home to a turtle
hatchery. Staff on the island collect some of the eggs laid each night and place them in a hatchery to protect them from
predators. Incubation of the eggs apparently takes around sixty days. Once hatched,
tourists are permitted to assist in the release of the baby turtles into the sea. In the
United States, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services classified ''Chelonia mydas'' as a threatened species, rendering it a federal offense to capture or otherwise kill an individual turtle. In part due to this, the
Hawaiian green turtle subpopulation has made a remarkable comeback and is now also the subject of eco-tourism and has become something of a state mascot. Students of
Hawaii Preparatory Academy on the Big Island have tagged thousands of specimens since the early 1990s.
In the
United Kingdom the species is protected by a
Biodiversity Action Plan, due to harvesting in excess from human
overpopulation and
marine pollution. The
Pakistani-branch of the
World Wide Fund for Nature has been initiating various projects for secure turtle hatching since the 1980s. However, the population has continued to decline due to various factors.
In the Atlantic, conservation initiatives have centered around nesting sites in the Caribbean. The
Tortuguero nesting beaches in
Costa Rica have been the subject of egg-collection limits since the 1950s. Two decades after, the
Tortuguero National Park formally established in 1976 ensuring the protection of that region's nesting grounds.
On
Ascension Island where some of the species' most important nesting beaches are, an active conservation program has been implemented.
Bibliography
★
★
References
1.
2. Green Sea Turtle (''Chelonia mydas'')
3. Species Fact Sheet: Green Sea Turtle
4. Green Sea Turtle
5. The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia., , G. A., Boulenger, Taylor & Francis, ,
6. Green Sea Turtle (''Chelonia mydas'')
7. Twenty-Six Years of Green Turtle Nesting at Tortuguero, Costa Rica: An Encouraging Trend, , Karen A., Bjorndal, Conservation Biology,
8. Genetic composition of a green turtle (''Chelonia mydas'') feeding ground population: evidence for multiple origins, , P. N., Lahanas, Marine Biology,
9. Audubon and His Journals: Dover Publications Reprint, , Maria R., Audubon, Scribner's Sons, ,
10.
11. First Direct Evidence of Migration by an East Pacific Green Seaturtle from Michoacan, Mexico to a Feeding Ground on the Sonoran Coast of the Gulf of California, , Jeffrey A., Seminoff, The Southwestern Naturalist,
12. Back from the Brink, , Daniel, Glick, The Smithsonian Magazine,
13. Ocean Ambassadors - Philippine Turtle Islands
14. Marine turtle and dugong habitats in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park used to implement biophysical operational principles for the Representative Areas Program, , Kirstin, Dobbs, Great Barrier Marine Park Authority, 2007,
15. Frequency of Foraging by Gravid Green Turtles (Chelonia mydas) at Raine Island, Great Barrier Reef, , Anton D., Tucker, Journal of Herpetology,
16. A summer cruise in the Gulf of Oman, , E., Butler, Stray Feathers,
17. Green Sea Turtle - ''Chelonia mydas japonica''
18. Marine Turtles in Baluchistan (Pakistan), , Brian, Groombridge, Marine Turtle Newsletter,
19. Green Turtle (''Chelonia mydas'')
20. Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle
21.
22. Polyandry in a marine turtle: Females make the best of a bad job, , Patricia L. M., Lee, Proceedings of the National Academy of Science,
23. A Molecular Phylogeny for Marine Turtles: Trait Mapping, Rate Assessment, and Conservation Relevance, , Brian W., Bowen, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America,
24.
25.
26.
27. Evolutionary Significant Units versus Geopolitical Taxonomy: Molecular Systematics of an Endangered Sea Turtle (genus ''Chelonia''), , Stephen H., Karl, Conservation Biology,
28.
29.
30. green turtle
31. Eating Turtles in Ancient China, , Edward H., Schafer, Journal of the American Oriental Society,
32. The Ecology of Java and Bali, , T, Whitten, Periplus Editions Ltd, ,
33. Sumertha, I.N. 1974. Perikanan penyu dan cara pengelolaan di Indonesia. ''Dokumen. Kom. IPB'' 8: 1-18. Cited in The Ecology of Java and Bali, , T, Whitten, Periplus Editions Ltd, ,
34. Marine Turtle Fibropapillomatosis: Hope Floats in a Sea of Ignorance, , Lawrence H., Herbst, Proceedings of the 19th Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Conservation and Biology,
35. Incidence of Fibropapillomas in the Green Turtle (Chelonia mydas) in Cuban Waters, , Felix, Moncada, Proceedings of the 19th Annual Symposium on Sea Turtle Conservation and Biology,
36.
37. The IUCN Amphibia-Reptilia Red Data Book, Part 1: Testudines, Crocodylia, Rhynocehapalia, , B., Groombridge, IUCN, ,
38. 1986 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals, IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre, , , IUCN, ,
39. 1988 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals, IUCN Conservation Monitoring Centre, , , IUCN, ,
40. 1990 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals, IUCN, , , IUCN, ,
41. 1994 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals, , B., Groombridge, IUCN, ,
42. 1996 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals, , B., Groombridge, IUCN, ,
43. Ruling of the IUCN Red List Standards and Petitions Subcommittee on Petitions against the 1996 Listings of Four Marine Turtle Species, 18 October 2001 Red List Standards & Petitions Subcommittee
44. Appendices CITES
45. Chelonia mydas UNEP-WCMC
See also
★ ''
Chelonioidea''. The
sea turtle superfamily.
★ ''
Caretta caretta''. The
loggerhead turtle.
★ ''
Dermochelys coriacea''. The
leatherback turtle.
★ ''
Eretmochelys imbricata''. The
hawksbill turtle.
★ ''
Lepidochelys kempii''. The
Kemp's Ridley turtle.
★ ''
Lepidochelys olivacea''. The
olive ridley turtle.
★ ''
Natator depressus''. The
flatback turtle.
External links
★ ARKive -
images and movies of the green turtle ''(Chelonia mydas)''
★ US Fish and Wildlife Service sites:
★
★
Floridian and Mexican populations
★
IUCN Red List entry
.jpg)
_O'ahu.JPG)
العربية
中国
Français
Deutsch
Ελληνική
हिन्दी
Italiano
日本語
Português
Русский
Español
