Leatherback Sea Turtle Research Paper

Now, as most may know sea turtles are both marine and land animals depending on what stage of life they are in. Which means that they need to be able to go on land during certain stages of their lives. One of the main reasons why a sea turtle will go on to land is to lay their eggs. Within the last few years this has become harder and harder for the already endangered species. It

Endangered Species Act and also appear on the list composed by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Human Predation-Though most countries find harvesting sea turtles for food illegal however, these laws are not enforced. U.S. shrimpers are required to put Turtle Excluder Device on their trawl nets since in the past shrimping nets have killed fifty thousand turtles annually. Nothing endangers them the most then plastic bags or helium balloons floating in the water. Effects of consumption include interference in metabolism or gut function. Temperature, which may affect embryo development, in the last hundred years the temperature, has changed six degrees Celsius. The temperature causes the change in the distribution of species in the ocean due to the change in prey and food.

The threatened bog turtle is a very small turtle, averaging 3.1 to 4.5 inches in length (USFWS 2015z) and it is characterized by a light brown to ebony shell and bright yellow, orange, or red blotches on each side of the head (USFWS 2001). The FWS proposed a final rule in 1997 to list the northern population of the bog turtle as threatened and southern population as threatened due to similarity of appearance, under provisions of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (62 FR 59605 59623, November 4, 1997). Regionally the northern population of the bog turtle is known to occur in localized distributions from western Massachusetts and Connecticut southward to Maryland, and the southern population is known to occur from Virginia southward to Georgia (USFWS 2001). In New York it is known to occur in 15 counties in the southeastern region of the state or along the south coast of Lake Ontario (USFWS

The leatherback is an endangered species. It's also the largest sea turtle. Adults usually weigh about 800 to 1,000 pounds (363 to 454 kilograms). Some have been reported to weigh as much as 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms). The turtles get their name because their backs are covered with leathery, oily tissue instead of a shell.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists Tomo Eguchi and Jeff Seminoff made oceanic history by releasing the first juvenile loggerhead sea turtle into the West Coast of the United States, with a transmitter attacked to its body. This exploration is going to aid scientists in getting a better understanding of what type of habitats juvenile loggerheads live in prior to participating in the years prior to participation in migration. Scientists are hopping to gain a better understanding of where juvenile loggerheads live for the sake protecting their habitats from fisherman. As of now, scientists have predicted that juvenile loggerheads tend to inhabit the same environments as swordfish. This is extremely dangerous to the lives of sea turtles considering that swordfish are heavily hunted by many fishermen. Therefore, if scientist theories are correct, the loggerheads are living in very dangerous environments. This exploration was initiated when a Coast Guard vessel found the loggerhead and took it to the Aquarium of the Pacific, where it would receive medical attention.

Over one hundred million years of existence, capable of traveling through the oceans of the world. One creature so magnificent that it is able to live up to 70 years old and weigh between 200 to 500 pounds. This creature is the majestic Hawaiian green sea turtle. Although they are found throughout the world, Hawaiian green sea turtles are distinctly different from other green sea turtles (NOAA Fisheries par. 4). They travel to the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands to nest and then travel to the main Hawaiian Islands to feed. Such a unique creature is very important to the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiian green sea turtles play an important role in the ecosystem, the economy, the culture, and the

Male adult turtles can reproduce every year, but the female turtles reproduce three or four years. After / mating, the female turtle finds a beach that they want to lay their eggs and dig holes in the ground. After the holes are dug, she lays her eggs. The female turtle can lay more than seventy- five to two hundred. After two months the eggs are caught. They have to try and make it to the water before another predator attack them on their way there. After they make it to the water, they wait twenty to twenty- five years before they can reproduce (“Sea Turtle Conservancy”).

Natural selection has shaped the leatherback sea turtle in a myriad of ways, bringing it to its present form. Bolstering its ability to survive, the leatherback's flexible and rubbery shell texture give the species and more hydrodynamic structure, allowing them to dive to depths of 4,200 feet. Leatherbacks are also able to maintain warm body temperatures in cold water by using a unique set of adaptations that allow them to both generate and retain body heat.

The Blanding turtle are freshwater medium sized turtle usually found in The Great Lakes Regions in USA and in Canada. They are from the omnivorous species and usually eat crayfish, small animals, and plants. Their life histories traits occurs between April and November, as May and April tend to be more for mating and Early June for nesting. Less than half of these females will actually go on to reproducing. Many of these turtles can actually live up to sixty to a hundred years in age. Though these turtles spend a majority of time in the aquatics they also come on to the mainland. This is were the problem starts to occur and this is why the Blanding sea turtles are currently threatened and may soon be extinct. It is because of us humans that these species are currently facing habitat loss, have threatened nesting areas, and are unable to get from nesting areas to the lakes because of manmade roads. Why should we as humans care so much if these Blanding’s turtles go extinct? These turtles play an important

Sea turtle hatchlings are now having trouble finding their way to the sea because of all the lights from buildings that are built on the coast. They get disoriented when they are born and will wander in the wrong way away from the sea. This leads them to predators that live inland or will even cause the turtle to become dehydrated and die. Humans are also building coastal armoring that is blocking female turtles from reaching a suitable nesting habitat. This is a severe problem in Florida where they have many coastal rock elevations and sand bags. Where all this beach development is occurring thousands of sea turtles are trying to nest. Beach dredging is also having a direct effect on sea turtle's trying to nest. If the sand is too impacted or is drastically different from native beach sediment, the mother will have trouble creating the

Loggerhead sea turtles are one of the most abundant species of the marine life in the U.S. oceans but the population is currently decreasing due to pollution increase and getting caught in bycatch. The term bycatch is when shrimp fishermen have their nets out and the animal ( in this case a loggerhead sea turtle) gets caught in the net and eventually killing the sea turtle . ((( Add More))))

Nesting habitat degradation is an anthropogenic threat to the loggerhead sea turtles. These threats include coastal development, erosion control barriers or beach armoring, artificial lighting, pollution, removal of native vegetation, and vehicle and pedestrian traffic (NMFS and USFWS 2007). Some solutions include protecting and managing turtles on nesting beaches, monitor coastal construction, implement lighting regulations, screen artificial lighting with vegetation, and impose regulations on beach armoring (NMFS and USFWS 1998). Predation is an important threat to consider in nesting areas for the loggerhead. Many places have depredation to protect the eggs and hatchlings against predators such as feral dogs, raccoons, and foxes (NMFS and USFWS 2007).

The species’ plastron bears similar markings to those of the carapace, i.e., wide, pale-yellow stripes on a darker background. Between the pectoral and the abdominal plastral scutes, the species’ plastron features a flexible hinge that divides the plastron into two lobes. The combination of a relative long, hinged plastron and a high-domed carapace enables the ornate box turtle to completely withdraw into its shell, thereby “boxing” itself inside and protecting the soft tissues of its head, limbs and tail quite effectively against attacks by predators.

Green turtles eat sea grass daily and it is digested and becomes recycled nutrients to the species of plants and animals living in the sea grass ecosystem. This preserves the sea grass beds and allows them to become more productive. A comparison of this would be like mowing the lawn to keep it growing and healthy. It’s important to maintain the sea grass beds because it also offers the purpose of being nurseries for numerous species of fishes, many that are valuable to fisheries, which is important to the human food chain. Green turtle’s hatchlings less than 8 inches in length eat worms, aquatic insects, grasses, and algae. Once the green turtle is bigger than 8 inches they mostly eat sea grass and algae which makes them the only turtle that is strictly herbivorous as an adult.

They have solid protection against predators, a carapace on top and the plastron underneath. Ashore, they often have many alternatives to control their temperature by changing their conduct, and escaping the frosty by tunneling or roosting on sunny rocks. Leatherbacks however, can keep up a body temperature well over the encompassing ocean temperature utilizing huge numbers of similar adjustments that marine warm-blooded creatures use. Regardless of these adjustments ocean turtles must come aground, for their eggs need the heat that only sunny shorelines can