Sea
Turtle History
 Measuring
15 feet from head to tail, 16.5 feet across from flipper
to flipper and weighing in at more than 4,500 pounds, with
a seven foot shell, the largest known specimen of sea turtle,
Archelon ischyros, was discovered in South Dakota in the
mid 1970’s. Living along side dinosaurs, some 70 million
years ago during the Cretaceous period, the largest sea
turtle ever discovered was a carnivore (meat-eater). It
is thought to be an ancient relative of the modern day leather
back turtle.
I certainly wouldn’t want to go swimming
with that turtle. Would you?
 Sea
turtles have been on the earth an estimated 200 million
years, first appearing during the Triassic period, 50 million
years before dinosaurs. With the exception of the leatherback
sea turtles, that look the same as they did 20 million years
ago, the other modern species of sea turtle are estimated
to be between 2 to 6 million years old. Modern sea turtles
are about half the size of their ancient relatives.
Christopher Columbus found so many sea turtles
in 1503 during his voyages to the Caribbean he named three
different islands; “Las Tortugas” (The Turtles).
Found in great numbers throughout the tropical oceans, sea
turtles were a primary food source for both ancient Polynesians
and European explorers.
Sea
Turtle Protection
Of the seven species of sea turtles, six are
found in U.S. waters: Green Sea Turtles, Hawksbill Turtles,
Kemp's Ridley Turtles, Leatherback Sea Turtles, Loggerhead
Sea Turtles, and Olive Ridley Turtles. All Six species of
sea turtles occurring in the U.S. are protected under the
Endangered Species Act of 1973.
Under the U.S. Endangered Species Act of 1973,
the Hawkbill and Leatherback are listed as endangered. The
Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle, a distinct population of Green
Sea Turtles, is listed as "threatened." This means
that the species is likely to be in danger of extinction
throughout all or a significant portion of its range in
the foreseeable future. The Olive Ridley Turtles are listed
as endangered in Mexico and threatened elsewhere. Loggerhead
turtles are listed as threatened.
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