Green sea turtle

The green sea turtle lives in warm seas.

It has a hard shell on its back. It also has big flippers for swimming.

This turtle eats green grass under the water. Eating this grass makes its fat look green.

Female turtles swim to beaches to lay eggs. The babies crawl into the water.

These turtles can live for 90 years. We must help keep them safe.

The green sea turtle lives in warm oceans.

They have a large shell on their back. This shell is called a carapace. Most shells are olive or black. The name "green turtle" does not come from the shell. It comes from the green fat under the shell. This fat is green because they eat seagrass.

Adult turtles like to eat plants. They are mostly herbivorous, which means they eat mostly plants. They live in shallow water to find food. They can live for 90 years in the wild.

These turtles travel very long distances. They move between feeding areas and beaches. Females crawl onto beaches at night. They dig nests to lay their eggs.

Soon, the tiny babies emerge from the sand. They scramble into the sea. Many turtles are in danger today. Pollution and fishing nets can hurt them. Building homes on beaches can take away their nesting spots. Many countries have laws to protect them.

The green sea turtle is a huge animal that lives in warm oceans.

It is a special member of the turtle family. This species is the only one in its group, called the genus Chelonia. You might hear people call it the black sea turtle or the Pacific green turtle too. These turtles live in tropical and subtropical seas all around the world. They are very important to the ocean ecosystems they inhabit.

This turtle has a very interesting way it works. Most sea turtles eat meat, but the green sea turtle is mostly herbivorous. This means it eats mostly plants like seagrass.

Because they eat so much seagrass, they have green fat under their shell. This fat is what gives them their common name. Their shell, or carapace, is actually olive or black. The turtle has a flat body and large, paddle-like flippers for swimming.

Scientists have studied these turtles for a long time. A man named Carl Linnaeus first described them in 1758. He called them Testudo mydas in his book, Systema Naturae. Later, in 1868, Marie Firmin Bocourt named a turtle Chelonia agassizii. He named it after a scientist named Louis Agassiz. Researchers later found that this was not a separate species. Instead, it was just a different population of the green sea turtle.

Green sea turtles can grow to be very large. They are the second largest sea turtles in the United States. An average adult has a carapace length of about 100 centimeters. Some very big turtles can weigh much more than that.

They can live for up to 90 years in the wild. These turtles travel long distances to find food and beaches. Females crawl onto beaches at night to dig nests and lay eggs.

Many things in our world affect these turtles today. They live in coastal areas of more than 140 countries. In Hawaii, they are called honu and are symbols of good luck. However, human activity can make life hard for them. Pollution and fishing nets can cause them harm. Building houses on beaches can also destroy their nesting spots.

Many countries now have laws to protect them and their eggs.

The green sea turtle, known scientifically as *Chelonia mydas*, is a massive marine reptile. It is the only species within the genus *Chelonia*. These turtles are found in tropical and subtropical seas across the globe. They are vital members of their ocean ecosystems. Many people call them black sea turtles or Pacific green turtles. In Hawaii, they are called *honu* and symbolize luck and long life.

What makes this turtle unique is its diet. Most sea turtles are carnivores, meaning they eat meat. However, the green sea turtle is mostly herbivorous when fully grown. This means it eats plants, specifically various species of seagrass. This diet creates a unique physical trait. The turtle develops green fat beneath its carapace, which is its upper shell. This greenish fat is why we call them green sea turtles. Their actual shells are usually olive to black in color.

The anatomy of *Chelonia mydas* is perfectly suited for life in the water. They have a dorsoventrally flattened body, which means they are flattened from top to bottom. Their large, teardrop-shaped carapace is made of specific parts. It features five central scutes, which are bony plates, and four pairs of lateral scutes. On the underside, they have a plastron with four pairs of inframarginal scutes. They also possess large, paddle-like flippers for swimming. Unlike the hawksbill turtle, the green sea turtle has a very short snout and an unhooked beak.

These turtles follow a complex life cycle involving long migrations. Adults often live in shallow lagoons to feed on seagrass. They travel great distances between these feeding grounds and specific hatching beaches. Female turtles crawl onto beaches at night to dig nests and lay eggs. Once the eggs hatch, the tiny hatchlings scramble toward the ocean. In the wild, these turtles can live for up to 90 years.

Scientists have a long history of studying these animals. Carl Linnaeus first described the species in 1758 as *Testudo mydas*. In 1868, Marie Firmin Bocourt named a group *Chelonia agassizii* to honor Louis Agassiz. This was later found to be a misspelling or a different name for the same species. Researchers eventually determined that these were not separate species. They are all part of *Chelonia mydas*. A 1993 study also helped clarify how the genus *Chelonia* relates to other marine turtles.

Green sea turtles are quite large and vary in size. They are the second largest sea turtles in the United States. An average mature turtle has a carapace length of about 100 centimeters. They can also reach very high weights. Some exceptional specimens have even reached much larger measurements. They live in coastal areas in more than 140 different countries. They have nesting sites in over 80 countries around the world.

The species is divided into distinct genetic populations. There are two major groups: the Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific. One group lives in the Atlantic and Mediterranean seas. The other group lives in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. These groups are separated by the southern tips of Africa and South America. Because there are no warm waters to travel through, they remain isolated. This isolation has caused them to develop different types of mitochondrial DNA.

Despite their importance, green sea turtles face many dangers from human activity. They were listed as endangered by the IUCN and CITES until 2025. In some places, they are still hunted for food. Pollution can harm them both as individuals and as a whole population. Many turtles die after becoming caught in fishing nets. Additionally, real estate development on coasts can destroy the beaches they need for nesting. Many countries now have laws to protect them and their habitats.