Sea turtles are marine reptiles that are characterized by a streamlined upper shell, long flippers, and a non-retractile neck.
Key Points
- Sea turtles appeared on Earth more than 100 million years ago and have been swimming in the oceans since.
- Out of the 100 turtle species, there are seven species that still survive worldwide. Five of the species in the Red Sea: the green turtle, the loggerhead turtle, the hawksbill turtle, the leatherback turtle, and the olive-ridley turtle and.
- All these 7 species of sea turtles have the same size.
- Though Sea turtles have a long life-span, their slow growth, low reproduction rate, and delayed age of maturity make them extremely vulnerable.
- The leatherback sea turtle is the largest sea turtle with a length of 23 m and a width of 11.5 m. They weigh up to 700 Kg.
Study related to Red Sea Turtles
- As per a recent study, turtle populations in the Red Sea could turn more female because of the rise in sea temperatures caused due to climate change.
- This study was conducted by a team of researchers from Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.
- The team selected 5 sites in the region having green turtles and hawksbill. The data related temperature of the sand at the nest depths of both species were collected by the researchers for 5 months.
- The sand temperatures at 4 of the selected sites exceeded 29.2 degrees.
- As per the team, the temperature of 29.2 degrees is very important to maintain a 50:50 ratio between male and female red sea turtles. If the sand temperature is above 29.2 degrees, the hatchlings are mostly females.
As four of the sites had the sand temperature above 29.2 degrees, scientists predict that the feminization of the red sea turtles population has already started.
