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Facts about marine turtles

turtles

16/01/2024

IT’S SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

It's estimated that only around 1 in 1,000 marine turtle hatchlings make it to adulthood. This is down to the long time it takes for them to reach maturity and the many dangers faced by hatchlings and juveniles – from predators to marine plastics.

16/01/2024

THEY CAN BE GINORMOUS

Marine turtle species vary greatly in size. The smallest, Kemp’s ridley, measure around 70cm long and weigh up to 40kg, whilst the leatherback can reach up to 180cm long and weigh 500kg. That’s over 10 times heavier!

Amazingly, Wales holds the world record for the largest marine turtle ever found. In 1988, a leatherback was found ashore measuring 2.5 m long, 2.5 m from flipper to flipper, and weighing over 900kg (that’s more than 140 stone)!

16/01/2024

THEIR YOUNG LIVES ARE A MYSTERY

The first few years of a marine turtle’s life are known as the ‘lost years’. That’s because the time between when the hatchlings emerge until they return to coastal shallow waters to forage is incredibly difficult to study. The lost years they spend at sea – which can be up to 20 years – largely remain a mystery to us.

09/01/2024

THEY’RE WELL ‘ARD

Turtle shells are made of over 50 bones fused together - so they're literally wearing their bones on the outside. They also have light, spongy bones that help them float.

09/01/2024

TURTLES DON’T HAVE TEETH

They use their beak-like mouth to grasp their food. This beak is made of keratin (the same stuff your fingernails are made of).

18/12/2023

THERE ARE SEVEN SPECIES OF MARINE TURTLE

Marine turtles were around more than 100 million years ago - and lived alongside dinosaurs. These days, scientists recognise seven species of marine turtle:
Hawksbill
Loggerhead
Leatherback
Olive ridley
Green
Flatback
Kemp's ridley
Six of these are threatened with extinction, and there's simply not enough information on the flatback to know how at risk they are.