Turtles!

Sad news for the turtles… 

Of the 7 marine species,

6 are endangered!

(Some are critically endangered)

 One of the biggest killers

of turtles is plastic bags. 

Plastic bags! 

People use them

and dump them…

they get tossed in the wind,

 blown into gutters

and sucked down drains. 

 These bags drift

into the oceans

and slowly, slowly sink. 

Turtles see them and eat them.

  The turtles slowly starve to death.

  Their stomach is full –

but they are starving. 

Many get caught in old netting…

 some are hit by motor boats…

 and some females

are killed by males who line up

 – one after the other –

the hold her down

and mate with her…

If she isn’t allowed up for air,

she will drown. 

(Nasty!)

Today is World Turtle Day. 

This day was first celebrated

in 2000.

So, in the last

100 million years,

turtles have not changed

very much at all…

their shell

(except for the Leatherback)

 protects them very well.

Some cool tidbits:

 

Loggerheads have to reach

30-50 years old before

they can even start to breed!

From hundreds of laid eggs,

only a few tiny turtles

 will grow to be old.  

Sea turtles cannot

pull their head into their shell.

Their front flippers

are so muscly

there is no room

 for their head! 

But…

the extra muscles mean

they are very powerful swimmers.

  Like sharks, their belly

 is light coloured

and their shell is darker –

this is great for camouflage.

 

I love that females

return to the exact beach

they hatched on

to lay their own eggs…

decades later.

Dedication like that

deserves a special day! 

Happy Turtle Day!

Photos from here, here and here.

Information from here and here.

Today is special

for one other reason...

the 23rd of May

is the day I started

being an aunty!

Happy Birthday!