Leatherback Sea Turtle

The leatherback sea turtle is the largest living turtle, generally reaching 500 kg and lengths of 2 meters.  These turtles lack the typical bony shell that one commonly associates with turtles.  Instead, they have a leathery shell with a matrix of bones embedded within.  The shell has a prominent keel running down the center that is flanked by three more keels on each side.  The skin is typically black with white spots.

Leatherback sea turtles nest in tropical or subtropical seas, but they are highly migratory and often swim into cooler waters off Nova Scotia and the United Kingdom outside of the breeding season.  They are unique to sea turtles in their ability to dive to incredible depths (below 1,000 meters) and tolerate cold water temperatures.  The leatherback sea turtle can actually maintain body temperature slightly warmer than ambient temperature.  They have high fat content and several physiological mechanisms that provide the function of holding metabolic heat within the body.  This allows the leatherback to follow their favorite food, jellyfish, into cooler waters at high latitudes and at deeper depths.

Leatherback nesting beaches in Africa include West Africa and South Africa.  Gabon hosts a major leatherback nesting beach and we are still exploring the nesting activity in other countries of West Africa.  Ada Foah, Ghana certainly hosts a large nesting population from November to March each year. 

Leatherback turtle populations have declined due to the global harvest of eggs, the slaughter of nesting females, and accidental capture in the commercial fisheries around the globe.  They also will sometimes choke and fill their stomachs with plastic bags floating in the ocean because these bags look similar to their favorite food item, jellyfish.