Green Sea Turtle

Quick Facts 

Name: Green sea turtle 

Diet: Adults are herbivores feeding on algae and seagrass. Juveniles may also feed on invertebrates and discarded fish. 

Behaviour: Solitary and mostly diurnal 

Lifespan: 70 years + 

Size: 160kg and around 100cm in length on average. Can reach up to 395kg and 152cm in length! 

Habitats/Range: Primarily found in subtropical and tropical regions of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans, and the Mediterranean. They nest on sandy beaches in more than 80 different countries. They spend most of their time in shallow, coastal waters with lush seagrass beds. 

Threats: Poaching of eggs and adult turtles, light pollution, bycatch, habitat degradation, disease, dynamite fishing, trawling, increased boat traffic, boat strikes, and more. 

Conservation Status: Endangered 

Names & Nicknames: Green sea turtle, green turtle, pacific green turtle, and confusingly - black sea turtle

Size: Usually around a metre long and 160kg in weight; however, one particularly beefy specimen was over 150cm long and weighed 395kg, as much as a grand piano!

Communication: Green sea turtles aren't exactly chatterboxes; in fact, it was only recently discovered that they made any sounds at all! If they really need to get their point across, they may stoop to other methods; a good bite will usually be enough to get another green turtle to leave them alone. Bites aren't always aggressive though; during mating season, a male will court a female turtle with a series of gentle love bites to the neck and flippers; what a charmer.

Favourite hangout: Unlike their giant leatherback cousins, green turtles can’t regulate their body temperature, so they need to stay in relatively warm waters. Can you really blame them? Cruising through the tropical coastlines feeding on seagrass does sound lush; now, if it only wasn't for those pesky humans ruining their habitats…

Favourite snack: Green sea turtles are the only herbivorous (plant-munching) species of sea turtle, mainly chowing down on seagrass and algae. However, it takes a while to discover their vegan lifestyle, as hatchlings and juveniles will grab an occasional fish or invertebrate snack.

Love language: Things get pretty feisty when green sea turtles are feeling romantic, especially if there are multiple males around trying to mate with the same female. After fighting off the competition with a series of bites, a successful male will nuzzle up to the female before attaching himself to the back of her shell, gripping on with claws in his front flippers. Nesting females are often seen with scratches along their shells, a sign of a nice... time.

If you see them: Lucky you; you're probably snorkelling through a tropical reef right now! Feel free to look; they're an incredible sight, but make sure you keep your distance from both adults and hatchlings; humans have long hunted green sea turtles, so it's probably time we let them be.

Red flags: Just installed new floodlights outside your beachside summer house? Well, unfortunately, this is a major red flag to sea turtles. When hatchlings emerge from their sandy nests, they must sprint for the sea, dodging numerous predators along the way. Now to find the sea after spending the last two months as an egg under the sand, sea turtle hatchlings look for the brightest thing to make a beeline to, as this is usually the moon reflecting onto the sea. When you throw artificial lights into the mix, these hatchlings can quite easily get confused, wandering away from the sea and towards dangerous roads and predators! You can do these little champions a favour by keeping the lights to a minimum or trying out some ‘turtle-friendly’ red lights.

Epic journeys: Like humans, green sea turtle hearts gravitate towards where they feed and where they nest. Unfortunately for them, these two places can be hundreds or even thousands of kilometres away. Luckily that isn’t a problem for these strong swimmers and their large front paddle-like flippers.

Eating habits: Imagine having a steak knife attached to your face. Although they don’t have teeth, the beak of a green sea turtle has a finely serrated edge, like said knife – perfect for slicing through seagrass.

Fact: Green sea turtles are older than dinosaurs! Well, none of those who are alive today though they can get pretty ancient living into their 80s, but the species itself dates back at least 110 million years.

Who are they: A tropical beach-loving veggie, happy to soak up the sun and go with the flow.

How threatened are they: Endangered