Chelonia mydas Linnaeus, 1758

Green Sea Turtle

Florida native

Endangered Florida species

U.S. Endangered species

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Green sea turtles nest on Florida beaches from June through September. They range worldwide in tropical and subtropical seas.
Adults can be up to a meter (3 ft 3 in.) long and weight up to 182kg (400 lbs.) with a somewhat flattened heart- or teardrop-shaped shell. The carapace (top of shell) is dark olive to black and the plastron (shell underside) is white. They are called green sea turtles because the body fat is green.
In late spring to early summer males migrate to off-shore waters to mate with females which during the summer dig nests on the beaches to lay clutches of eggs usually numbering over a hundred. A female green sea turtle may lay up to seven nests in a season. After incubating from 45 to 60 days, the hatchlings emerge from the nest and immediately make their way into the sea.

Chelonia mydas is a member of the Cheloniidae - Sea Turtles family.

iNaturalist profile for this species

For more information on this species, visit the following link:
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission website page for this species

Date record last modified: Sep 30, 2023