Cobamu Facts
Share Through Abundance
Did you know?
- Sea turtles have been around since the age of the dinosaurs and can be found in almost every ocean basin throughout the world. The sea turtles’ shell, or “carapace,” is designed to protect them from their natural predators and to glide through water with ease. Unlike other turtles, sea turtles cannot retract their legs and head into their shells.
- The champion of sea turtles is the enormous leatherback, which can grow up to seven feet (two meters) long and weigh more than 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms)! Leatherbacks are capable of diving deeper than any other turtle and withstanding the coldest water temperatures found in both the northern and southern hemispheres. They are known to travel up to 10,000 miles a year.
- The actual sea turtle lifespan is not known for certain. Most estimates put it between 50-80 years with many scientists acknowledging that some species can live over a century.
- A long lifespan provides more opportunities to procreate. Sea turtles spend their entire lives at sea, except when adult females come ashore to lay eggs every two to three years. Female sea turtles return to the same nesting grounds where they were born and will lay up to 150 eggs in a season.
- After about 60 days, baby sea turtles, known as “hatchlings,” emerge from their sandy nests and scuttle as fast as they can to the ocean. This is a very dangerous time for them as they are particularly vulnerable until their shell hardens. The gender of each turtle depends on how hot or cold their environment was while they were in their eggs.Warm temperatures tend to produce more female hatchlings, whereas cooler temperatures result in males.
- Of the seven species of sea turtles, six are endangered or threatened in part due to poaching, entanglement, and pollution. It is estimated that only one hatchling in a thousand will make it to adulthood.
