Leatherback Sea Turtle

Dermochelys coriacea

Reptile

Transcript:

Today on Animal Fact Files we’re discussing leatherback sea turtles. These are the largest living turtles in the world. Reaching seven feet (2.1m) long with flippers that span even further, these turtles range from 500 to 2,000 pounds (227-907kg)! That’s as much as a rhinoceros! Leatherbacks are separated from the other six sea turtle species by their unique appearance. As their name implies, leatherback sea turtles lack the hard, bony shell seen in other sea turtles. Instead they have bony plates covered by leathery skin, hence the common name. This skin helps leatherbacks maintain a higher temperature than their surrounding environment meaning they can live in colder water than any other living sea turtles. For this reason, leatherbacks are the most wide ranging reptiles alive today!

Leatherback sea turtles live from sub-arctic marine waters to the tropics. They nest on temperate and tropical beaches, but do their foraging in colder areas. Some individuals travel thousands of miles one way to reach breeding grounds. Only female leatherbacks leave the water to lay their eggs. Males meet up with females in the deep waters off nesting beaches and mate with as many partners as they can. If they were successful at a certain beach during a previous breeding season, the turtles will return to that same beach. Over the course of the season, they may use multiple different beaches to lay their eggs. Female leatherbacks have an average of 100 eggs per nest and produce about a dozen nests each time they breed. They take two to three year intervals between nesting events. The babies hatch at night and their sex is temperature dependant. They're most vulnerable during this part of their lives.

Only about 50% of leatherback eggs hatch. Nests and young are predated by crabs, gulls, raccoons, and more. As they get older, their predators decrease, however they may still be taken by sharks and killer whales. That doesn't mean they won't go down without a fight. In one observation, a leatherback chased a shark away after it was attacked and then proceeded to knock into the observing boat! The greatest threat to leatherback sea turtles are humans. Run-ins with ships and fishing gear, harvesting of nests, and habitat destruction have led to a decline of nearly 50% of the leatherback population in under 100 years.

These massive reptiles spend most of their time out in the open ocean. They most commonly inhabitat continental shelves, or the area of ocean before it slopes into deep water. That doesn’t mean they’re limited to shallow waters, though. Leatherback sea turtles have been documented diving over 4,000 feet (1219m) below the waves! They can hold their breath for almost 90 minutes if needed while making these dives. These turtles have knife-like jaws to slice through soft bodied prey. Their main food source is jellyfish. It may be for this reason the flesh of leatherbacks can be toxic to consume! Leatherbacks have spiky protrusions in their throats facing towards their stomach to hold prey in place while they swallow. Aside from jellyfish, they also eat cephalopods, snails, fish, and crustaceans. It's unknown how long leatherbacks can live in the wild though they're estimated to reach at least 50 years of age.

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