"Green turtle" redirects here. For the comic book character, see Green Turtle (comics).
"Chelonia" redirects here. For the synonym of the order Testudines, see Turtle.
Green sea turtle
A green sea turtle swimming above a Hawaiian coral reef
Conservation status
Endangered (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification
Domain:
Eukaryota
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Reptilia
Order:
Testudines
Suborder:
Cryptodira
Superfamily:
Chelonioidea
Family:
Cheloniidae
Subfamily:
Cheloniinae
Genus:
Chelonia Brongniart, 1800
Species:
C. mydas
Binomial name
Chelonia mydas
(Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms[3]
Species synonymy
Testudo mydas Linnaeus, 1758
Testudo macropus Walbaum, 1782 (nomen illegitimum)
Testudo viridis Schneider, 1783
Testudo japonica Thunberg, 1787
Testudo marina vulgaris Lacépède, 1788
Testudo viridisquamosa Lacépède, 1788
Testudo mydas macropus Suckow, 1798
Chelonia mydas — Brongniart, 1800
Testudo chloronotos Bechstein, 1800
Testudo cepediana Daudin, 1801
Testudo rugosa Daudin, 1801
Chelone mydas — Brongniart, 1805
Chelonia japonica — Schweigger, 1812
Chelonia virgata Schweigger, 1812
Caretta cepedii Merrem, 1820
Caretta esculenta Merrem, 1820
Caretta thunbergii Merrem, 1820
Caretta mydas — Fitzinger, 1826
Caretta virgata — Fitzinger, 1826
Chelonia lachrymata Cuvier, 1829
Chelonia maculosa Cuvier, 1829
Chelonia midas [sic] Wagler, 1830 (ex errore)
Chelonia mydas var. japonica — Gray, 1831
Chelonia esculenta — Wiegmann & Ruthe, 1832
Chelonia bicarinata Lesson, 1834
Chelonia marmorata A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1835
Chelonia (Chelonia) cepedeana [sic] Fitzinger, 1835 (ex errore)
Chelonia viridis — Temminck & Schlegel, 1835
Mydas mydas — Cocteau, 1838
Mydasea mydas — Gervais, 1843
Euchelonia mydas — Tschudi, 1846
Megemys mydas — Gistel, 1848
Chelonia lacrymata [sic] Agassiz, 1857 (ex errore)
Chelonia formosa Girard, 1858
Chelonia tenuis Girard, 1858
Euchelys macropus — Girard, 1858
Chelone macropus — Strauch, 1862
Chelone maculosa — Strauch, 1862
Chelone marmorata — Strauch, 1862
Chelone virgata — Strauch, 1862
Chelone viridis — Strauch, 1862
Chelonia albiventer Nardo, 1864
Thalassiochelys albiventer — Günther, 1865
Chelonia agassizii Bocourt, 1868
Mydas viridis — Gray, 1870
Chelone midas — Cope, 1871
Chelonia lata Philippi, 1887
Chelone mydas — Boulenger, 1889
Chelonia mydas mydas — Mertens & L. Müller, 1928
Caretta thunbergi [sic] H.M. Smith, 1931 (ex errore)
Chelonia mydas agassizii — Carr, 1952
Chelonia mydas agassizi [sic] Schmidt, 1953 (ex errore)
Chelonia mydas carrinegra Caldwell, 1962
Chelonia agazisii [sic] Tamayo, 1962 (ex errore)
Testudo nigrita Tamayo, 1962
Chelonia agassizi — Carr, 1967
Chelonia mydus [sic] Nutaphand, 1979 (ex errore)
Chelonia mydas carinegra [sic] Nutaphand, 1979 (ex errore)
Testudo chloronotus [sic] H.M. Smith & R.B. Smith, 1980 (ex errore)
Chelone albiventer — Márquez, 1990
Caretta thumbergii [sic] Sharma, 1998 (ex errore)
Chelonia mydas viridis — Karl & Bowen, 1999
The green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas), also known as the green turtle, black (sea) turtle or Pacific green turtle,[4] is a species of large sea turtle of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus Chelonia.[5] Its range extends throughout tropical and subtropical seas around the world, with two distinct populations in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but it is also found in the Indian Ocean.[6][7] The common name refers to the usually green fat found beneath its carapace, due to its diet strictly being seagrass,[8] not to the color of its carapace, which is olive to black.
The dorsoventrally flattened body of C. mydas is covered by a large, teardrop-shaped carapace; it has a pair of large, paddle-like flippers. It is usually lightly colored, although in the eastern Pacific populations, parts of the carapace can be almost black. Unlike other members of its family, such as the hawksbill sea turtle, C. mydas is mostly herbivorous. The adults usually inhabit shallow lagoons, feeding mostly on various species of seagrasses.[9] The turtles bite off the tips of the blades of seagrass, which keeps the grass healthy.
Like other sea turtles, green sea turtles migrate long distances between feeding grounds and hatching beaches. Many islands worldwide are known as Turtle Island due to green sea turtles nesting on their beaches. Females crawl out on beaches, dig nests, and lay eggs during the night. Later, hatchlings emerge, and scramble into the water. Those that reach maturity may live to 90 years in the wild.[6]
C. mydas is listed as endangered by the IUCN and CITES and is protected from exploitation in most countries.[10] It is illegal to collect, harm, or kill them. In addition, many countries have laws and ordinances to protect nesting areas. However, turtles are still in danger due to human activity. In some countries, turtles and their eggs are still hunted for food. Pollution indirectly harms turtles at both population and individual scales. Many turtles die after being caught in fishing nets. In addition, real estate development often causes habitat loss by eliminating nesting beaches.
^Seminoff, J.A.; et al. (Southwest Fisheries Science Center, U.S.) (2004). "Chelonia mydas". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2004: e.T4615A11037468. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2004.RLTS.T4615A11037468.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
^Fritz, Uwe; Peter Havaš (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World". Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 165–167. doi:10.3897/vz.57.e30895. S2CID 87809001.
^Swash, A. & Still, R. (2005). Birds, Mammals, and Reptiles of the Galápagos Islands. Second Edition. Hampshire, UK:WildGuides Ltd. p.116.
^"Chelonia mydas". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved February 21, 2007.
^ ab"Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas)". National Geographic – Animals. National Geographic Society. December 29, 2005. Archived from the original on 2007-02-05. Retrieved February 21, 2007.
^Ferri, Vincenzo (2002). Turtles & Tortoises. Buffalo, New York: Firefly Books. ISBN 978-1-55209-631-4.
^Howell, Lyndsey N; Shaver, Donna J. (2021). ". "Foraging habits of green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico."". Frontiers in Marine Science (8). 8. doi:10.3389/fmars.2021.658368.
^Cite error: The named reference WildlifeofPakistan was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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