| Reptiles |
Olive Ridley Sea Turtle
Lepidochelys olivacae
| Conservation Status: Endangered - Protected
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- © Aquarium of the Pacific and K. Leonard
- Photo taken at the Aquarium's Soft Coral Reef in the Tropical Pacific Gallery.
Olive ridley turtles are the smallest and most numerous of the seven sea turtle species. The ‘olive’ in their common name comes from the coloration of the adults. Males usually spend their entire lives at sea while females characteristically only leave the water to lay their eggs, usually on the beach where they themselves hatched (nest site fidelity). Over the years, purposeful and accidental depredations have seriously reduced populations of this species in selected geographic areas.
Facts and Features
- Geographic Distribution
Pacific and Indian oceans, along south Atlantic coast of east Africa and South America. Breeding: Pacific principally from Mexico south to east Columbia with major beaches in Mexico, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Most common in the Indian, eastern Pacific, and southern Atlantic Oceans but distributed worldwide in tropical and subtropical ocean waters. Occasionally seen along the southern California coast.
- Amazing Facts
Male sea turtle embryos can't stand the heat. The temperature of the sand in which the eggs are incubated determines the sex differentiation of hatchlings. Warmer temperatures yield more female offspring; cooler temperatures yield more males. Temperature rise due to global climate change may cause male turtles to lose their cool.
- At the Aquarium
The habitat for our olive ridleys is the Tropical Reef and the Soft Coral Gardens in the Tropical Pacific gallery.
