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Other sea turtle species are smaller, ranging from as little as 60 cm (2 ft) long in the case of the Kemp's ridley, which is the smallest sea turtle species, to 120 cm (3.9 ft) long in the case of the green turtle, the second largest. [5] [12] The skulls of sea turtles have cheek regions that are enclosed in bone.
In contrast to their earth-bound relatives, tortoises, sea turtles do not have the ability to retract their heads into their shells. Their plastron, which is the bony plate making up the underside of a turtle or tortoise's shell, is comparably more reduced from other turtle species and is connected to the top part of the shell by ligaments without a hinge separating the pectoral and abdominal ...
Turtles have been classified in different ways by different authors. While they were previously considered anapsids , they are now considered more derived. [ 1 ] Recent analyses of molecular evidence have strongly suggested that they belong in the clade Archosauromorpha (also known as Archelosauria). [ 2 ]
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 ]
Kemp's ridley is the smallest of all sea turtle species, reaching maturity at 58–70 cm (23–28 in) carapace length and weighing only 36–45 kg (79–99 lb). [13] Typical of sea turtles, it has a dorsoventrally depressed body with specially adapted flipper-like front limbs and a beak.
Sea turtles, and several extinct forms, have evolved a bony secondary palate which completely separates the oral and nasal cavities. [30] The necks of turtles are highly flexible, possibly to compensate for their rigid shells. Some species, like sea turtles, have short necks while others, such as snake-necked turtles, have long ones.
For example, the site’s Turtle Lagoon exhibit mimics the sea creature’s natural surroundings,and the Open Ocean exhibit holds 18,000 gallons of saltwater and plays host to more than 50 species ...
Example species Example image Carettochelyidae Boulenger, 1887: 1: Pig-nosed turtle: Pig-nosed turtle (Carettochelys insculpta) Cheloniidae Oppel, 1811: 6: Sea turtles: Green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) Chelydridae Gray, 1831: 2: Snapping turtles: Alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) Dermatemydidae Gray, 1870 : 1: Central American ...