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Leatherback turtle

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  Animal class: Reptiles- (Their bodies are covered in bony plates or scales, they breathe air with lungs, are cold-blooded (their bodies cannot hold heat and must warm themselves by their surroundings like the sun), have vertebrae (spine or backbone), most have four legs, they lay eggs (Some species like the Viper (snake) will keep their eggs in their bodies until the egg hatches. Then the baby is born. A few rare species have a live birth like the Three-toed skink), and their sizes range from the Brookesianana (a chameleon) at .55 in (1.4 cm) to the Saltwater crocodile at 20 ft (6 m)) (Example: Lizards, turtles, snakes, and alligators. There are about 9,000 diff erent species.)
• Diet: Omnivore (They eat plants and meat): Jellyfish, seaweed, and sea squirts
• Lifespan: They live around 30-40 years
• Predators: Plastic bags in the ocean (they get confused for jellyfish, not an animal, but still kill many turtles), sharks, and other large animals. Crabs, birds, cats, and dogs eat their eggs
• Size: about 4.5- 6.5 ft (1.5-2 m), but some are much bigger
• Species: Out of the seven different species of sea turtles, the leatherback is the largest. There are around 550 different species of turtles.
• Speed: About 22 mph (35 kph)
• Status: Vulnerable
• Weight: 562-2,000 lbs (255-900kg)
• Where do they live?: These turtles live in warm and tropical waters and sometimes be spotted in colder waters near Alaska.
• Their cartilage-like shells are covered with their rubbery skin, unlike other turtles, whose bony shells are on the outside, and we can see them.
• Their throats are covered with backward-facing spines. The spines help when they are eating jellyfish. Since Leatherback turtles do not have teeth (their mouth is more like a beck), so the jellyfish cannot escape.
• Females go to warm tropical beaches to make their nests for their eggs, but they usually never choose the same beach each year. Here, the nests are vulnerable to Predators.
• They can dive about 4,000 ft (1,200 m), and if needed, they can hold their breath for about 75 minutes, depending on their actions.
• They also travel thousands of miles (km) a year between where they nest and eat.