RIDLEY SEA TURTLE

Sources:- http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/olive-ridley-sea-turtle/ - http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/turtles/oliveridley.htm

Olive ridleys often migrate great distances between feeding and breeding grounds. Using satellite telemetry tags, scientists have documented both male and female olive ridleys leaving the breeding and nesting grounds off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica migrating out to the deep waters of the Pacific Ocean.They migrate hundreds or even thousands of miles every year, and come together as a group only once a year for the arribada, when females return to the beaches where they hatched and lumber onshore, sometimes in the thousands, to nest.

Ridley Sea Turtle

Juvenile turtles tend to live in floating sargassum seaweed beds for their first years.

According to the Marine Turtle Specialist Group (MTSG) of the IUCN , there has been a 50% reduction in population size since the 1960s. Human Threats-collection of turtle eggs -killing turtles -incidental captures in fishing gear specifically in Central America and the Indian Ocean

By:Cristina Nicolosi

-Feed primarily on crabs during migration.-Migrate to return together to allow the females to lay their aggs on beaches.

Other fun facts:-The olive ridley is considered the most abundant sea turtle in the world, with an estimated 800,000 nesting females annually.-one of the most extraordinary nesting habits in the natural world.-Weight: 100 lbs (45 kg) for average adults;hatchlings weigh <1 ounce (28 g)