#leatherback turtle

[fishstims]

benjhicks on instagram

[hornyharpy]

Leatherback Postman Taur

TH page

[drhoz]

#2829 - Psephophorus terryprachetti - Pterry's Giant Pturtle

A very large, extinct, leatherback turtle from the Eocene, named after beloved author Terry Pratchett. He was pleased about this, saying that anybody that wasn't delighted about getting a species named after them was clearly a Pod being from the Planet Zog.

The first fossils from the genus were discovered by German Paleontologist Christian Erich Hermann von Meyer in 1846, but all he had were the dermal plates (not that different from the fossil above, really). That's probably why even by 1879, they still weren't clear on what it actually was - British paleotologist Harry Govier Seeley thought they resembled the armour of an armadillo.

The Pturtle was discovered in New Zealand in the 1990s. It would have been 2.5m long, in life.

Sadly, there's only one Dermochelyid turtle left in the world - the Leatherback Dermochelys coriacea, which is critically endangered in some areas. Leatherbacks are unique compared to other modern sea turtles because they lack a bony shell; instead, its carapace is covered by oily flesh and flexible, leathery skin. They're also the deepest-diving and fastest reptiles in the world, swimming down to over 1200m depth, at speeds of up to 35kph. Their constant activity and internal adaptations lets them run at a surprisingly high internal temperature - 18C above the surrounding water.

The biggest threat to leatherback survival is, unfortunately, humanity - hatchlings can be confused by artificial light and head inland instead of towards the water, older turtles are easily caught in fishing nets, and they can confuse plastic bags floating in the water for the jellyfish that form the bulk of their diet.

Otago Museum, Dunedin, Aotearoa New Zealand.

[vintagewildlife]

Leatherback sea turtles By: WWF From: The World Conservation Yearbook 1976

[ultraohwormhole]

Made a new oc :] his name is Cory! See him here (nsfw links) -> twitter bsky

[typhlonectes]

Leatherback sea turtles are the largest turtles in the world and existed at the same time as dinosaurs.

Yet despite surviving for millennia, endangered leatherbacks can't endure humanity's assault on the world's oceans much longer. It's estimated that leatherback populations have declined by 40 percent over the past three generations. It's clear they need a lifeline. Last week alongside our allies, we filed a legal petition urging the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to revise protected critical habitat for the leatherback sea turtle under the Endangered Species Act. Species with federally protected critical habitat are more than twice as likely to recover as species without it.

via: Center for Biological Diversity

Find out more and see what you can do to help:

Leatherback sea turtle (biologicaldiversity.org)

[keawi]

[namu-the-orca]

Leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) And here's the last of the illustrations made for the UK bycatch project. Not my usual subject and yet an old friend, as I had previously illustrated a Leatherback for the Marine Animal Response Society. Like last time I had a lot of fun with this one, especially the white markings. They are a beautiful and willing subject.

These are the very biggest of the turtles, growing to a whopping 2.7 metres in length and weighing over half a ton, though most are significantly smaller. Highly recommend looking up photos of them next to humans to get a sense of their size. Also internet famous for their impressively spiked throat, which helps keep jellyfish (their prey) from flowing back outside once caught.