Green Sea Turtle

DISTRIBUTION IN COSTA RICA

DEPTH RANGE

Depth range: 1–50 m (3–164 ft)

Common: 1–30 m (3–98 ft)

HABITAT

🪸 Reefs

🌊 Coastal Areas

🌿 Seagrass Beds

🏝️ Shallow Waters

HOW TO IDENTIFY IT

• Adult size: up to 1.4 m (5 ft)
• Adult weight: up to 180 kg
• Oval, smooth shell, usually olive-green to brown, with radiating patterns.
• Small head compared with the body and two pairs of prefrontal scales.
• Flippers with one visible claw on each front flipper.
• A single large scale at the front of each flipper and two on the rear flippers.
• Smooth shell without ridges or keels, usually olive-brown in color.

SIMILAR SPECIES

• Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata): Shell with overlapping scutes and a more curved, pointed beak.
• Olive Ridley Turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea): Smaller and more compact. Shell usually more rounded and uniformly olive-gray.

SIGHTING FREQUENCY

• ●●●○○ Regular

REPRODUCTION

• Sexual maturity Between 20 and 40 years, when they reach a shell length of approximately 70–100 cm.
• They are oviparous, with internal fertilization.The nesting season occurs throughout the year, with peaks during the rainy season.
• Females lay 2–5 nests at intervals of 10–15 days. Each nest contains approximately 100–150 eggs.
• Hatchlings emerge from the nest after approximately 45–60 days, depending on the incubation temperature.
• Higher temperatures generally produce more females, while lower temperatures produce more males.
• 🥚 Egg-laying (Oviparous)

BEHAVIOR

• Generally calm and curious.
• Feeds mainly on seagrass.
• Surfaces to breathe approximately every 20–30 minutes.

DIET

• 🌿 Seagrass
• 🟢 Algae
• 🦐 Small Invertebrates