Leatherback Turtle Facts

* The leatherback turtle, Dermochelys coriacea, is the largest turtle and fourth largest reptile.
* Leatherback turtles inhabit the deep waters of the world’s oceans. They migrate between cold waters and tropical seas every 1 to 3 years.
* Male leatherbacks never leave the water. Female leatherbacks come ashore to lay eggs and nest. They lay clutches of roughly 100 eggs on warm, sandy beaches but don’t nest continuously. Female leatherbacks nest once every 8 to 15 days.
* The leatherback turtle has a round, flat body and two pairs of flippers like all sea turtles. The leatherback is the only sea turtle not to have a shell. Instead of a hard bony plate, the leatherback has rubbery skin.
* Adults leatherbacks weigh 700 kg (1540 pounds) and measure 2 m (6.5 feet) in length. The largest leatherback ever recorded weighed 918 kg (2020 pounds) and measured 2.6 m (8.5 feet).
* Leatherback turtles feed on jellyfish and are a natural control for the jellyfish population.
* The leatherback is an endangered species and it is the last surviving member of the Dermochelys species.