Sea Turtles

            
             The Lepidochelys olivacea or more commonly known as the Olive Ridley is the smallest of the sea turtles usually weighing less than 100 pounds and is named for its olive colored shell. The Olive Ridley is found in tropical regions of the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans. Full grown turtle are usually between 24 to 28 inches (62-70 cm) in length, and weigh between 77 and 100 pounds (35-45 kg). The Olive Ridley's head is quite small. The carapace (upper part of shell) is bony with no ridges and has large scales present. The carapace has 6 or more scales and is nearly circular and smooth. Its. Both the front and rear flippers have 1 or 2 visible claws. There is sometimes an extra claw on the front flippers. Juveniles are charcoal gray in color, while adults are a olive green and hatchlings are black when with greenish sides.
             The Olive Ridley does not have teeth, but its jaws have modified "beaks" suited to their particular diet. They do not have visible ears but have eardrums covered by skin. They hear best at low frequencies, and they have an excellent sense of smell. They have good vision underwater, but they are nearsighted out of water. Their sleek bodies and large flippers make them remarkably adapted to life at sea. However, sea turtles maintain close ties to land. They have hard shells to protect them from the one predator they have.
             This omnivorous turtle searches in surface waters or dives to depths of at least 150 meters (500 feet) to feed on shrimp, crabs, sea urchins, mollusks, tunicates, and jellyfish. Predators such as raccoons, crabs and ants raid eggs and hatchlings still in the nest. Once they hatch, they become meals for birds, crabs and a bunch of predators in the ocean. After reaching adulthood, sea turtles are quite unaffected by predation, except for the occasional shark attack. The Olive Ridley's are endangered because of the pollution in the water, because of illegal poaching of eggs, and because of fish and shrimp nets.