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The Green Sea Turtle, or honu (pronounced hoe'-new), once came close to extinction years ago because they were hunted for their beautiful shells, tasty meat and people gather their eggs for ornaments. There are more than 40 kinds of turtles that are endangered. These rare turtles include many types of tortoises but mostly sea turtles.Today these turtles are protected by the Endangered Species Act of 1973. Even though it looks like their numbers are growing, there are fewer females returning each year to nest.
All turtles, including sea and freshwater species, lay their eggs on land. A green turtle may lay as many as seven clutches (groups) of eggs during one breeding season. About 45% of the time, the female exits the water, crawls the beach for long distances and reenters the water without digging a nest. These are called "false crawls" and usually occur because the turtle was disturbed or it could not find a "good" nest site. It is believed that a female turtle will return to the same beach where she was born.
Incubation of the nests takes about 50-55 days. After the incubation period, the hatchlings emerge from the nest in masses. Using various environmental and inherited cues, they quickly migrate to the water's edge. If artificial lights are lighting the beach, the hatchlings will be disoriented, travel in the wrong direction, and possibly never make it to the water. Once in the water the hatchlings swim directly out to sea, facing a perilous struggle to survive to adulthood.
The best scientific estimates available indicate that only one in 1,000 to 10,000 hatchlings will survive (anywhere from 12 - 50 years) to become a reproducing and nesting adult sea turtle. The maximum age of adult turtles is not known.
The two known predators to the sea turtles are (tiger) sharks and people. We can't do much about the sharks, but maybe we can make a difference with people through education and awareness.
MAHALO, Hope you enjoy the pictures!
2 turtles on the sand, turtle trax (photo)
Green Sea Turtle with head above water (photo)
Green Sea Turtle on sand with head up (photo)
more information and more pictures of sea turtles