La loggerhead turtle It has a larger head than the rest of the turtles, the shell that protects its organs has a special heart shape, which curiously is also stronger and harder than that of the rest of the species, however, this species is in danger of extinction. We invite you to discover why.
What are Loggerhead Turtles?
Turtles They are a class of reptiles that have a shell that protects their vital organs from blows, attacks from other predators and also serves as a permanent home throughout their lives; that in some species it becomes quite long-lived. These species are also named as turtles, of the turtles you can only see their legs, head and tail.
They are oviparous animals that make their nests on the ground and there they incubate their eggs in certain seasons of the year, so that later comes the moment when their future offspring are born, in addition, turtles can live for many years, more approximately between 50 and 100 years. There are different types of turtles, but this time we are going to talk about the loggerhead turtle or Caretta Carreta, whose head is much larger than that of other turtles, since it measures about 25 centimeters and is yellow in color.
The loggerhead turtle lives in almost all the oceans in the extension of the planet that have temperate and tropical temperatures, for example: the Pacific seas, the Mediterranean Sea, in addition to the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, however, in the winter season the Caretta Caretta move into warm waters, which are generally beaches near coral reefs, saltwater lagoons, and river headwaters.
Characteristics of the Loggerhead Turtle
These turtles are known by several names, one of them is Caretta caretta, which is its scientific name, but they are also known as loggerhead, loggerhead, cayuse, or loggerhead turtles. The name loggerhead turtle is given thanks to the ease with which fishermen caught it, the big-headed turtle is thanks to the large size of its head.
At first glance, all specimens of this species look the same, however, they can be differentiated by the number of bone plates they have in their shells, the loggerhead turtle They can weigh between 80 and 200 kilos when they are adults, while they have a length that is between 70 and 95 centimeters long. These turtles are the only ones of their kind that correspond to the Cheloniidae group, within the great family of ocean turtles.
It can be seen that these turtles are special due to their large size and the longevity they reach throughout their life cycle. It should be noted that a large number of parasites and living beings live on top of the shell of these species, such as barnacle algae, and this shell is usually brown, olive and reddish tones.
Loggerhead sea turtles make a very long journey, in fact it is one of the longest known in ocean turtles, annually the loggerheads travel more than 12.000 kilometers to some beaches where they nest in Japan, and also to the coast of Mexico where they feed. During their journey, they have to dodge many fishermen's hooks and all the fishing nets in the seas, which represent diverse and varied dangers for this community during their underwater voyages.
La endangered loggerhead sea turtle It is a widely discussed topic in many parts of the world, since these are not very far from extinction, which is very worrying because a single turtle of this species is capable of carrying approximately 100 different organisms in its shell. of animals and plants, which depend on it to live, which is one more reason to take care of them, protect them and maintain that symbiosis of the seabed.
Loggerhead Turtle Feeding
La loggerhead turtle is part of the Omnivorous animals, that is, they feed on plants and animals, although it is worth noting that adults prefer meat, such as that which comes from crabs and snails.
These turtles have a very balanced diet, they can feed on marine plants, algae, small gastropods, shrimp, sea urchins, fish, jellyfish, squid, sponges, fish eggs and even sargassum, all thanks to their strong jaw , then these animals, along with other invertebrates that live in the ocean, are part of their daily diet.
Loggerhead Turtle Reproduction
Loggerhead turtles are mostly alone, however, when the time comes to nest and procreate life, the male migrates to the place where the female is, although she refuses to be mounted by the male during her first attempts, until the male insists on his mission and manages to mount her. They usually circle around each other as part of the mating ritual, sometimes there are two males looking for the female, then they must fight and the one who wins is the one who ends up riding her.
The female is ready for sexual activity between 17 and 33 years of age, and her mating with the male can last up to six weeks, enough time for him to get several partners, and all this occurs within the depths of the ocean.
The male is usually sexually active between 15 and 30 years of age, when they are in the copulation process the other males usually bite and attack the one who is mounted during their sexual activity, causing strong injuries, in many cases they are so serious that can take a long time to heal, however and despite all the adversities during mating, females can have multiple fathers.
After mating, the female returns to the beach where she nests and lays her eggs in the sand, in each laying she can lay between 100 and 130 eggs, this occurs between the periods of May and August, the eggs carry out their incubation process during a period of approximately 45 to 95 days. The young of these turtles come out of the egg breaking the shell and go in search of the ocean, when they are born they can measure 39 millimeters and weigh up to 40 grams.
The Carettas Carettas nest every two years, 4 or 7 times a season, where each time there are many eggs that they bury and sometimes they all hatch, however, on the way to the ocean some die at the hands of predators that they get in the path from the sand to the waters of the sea.
Taxonomy of the Caretta Caretta
La loggerhead turtle which is also popularly known as Cabezona or the Loggerhead turtle, corresponds to the Cheloniidae group, the same of all these sea species with the exception of the Leatherback Turtle. According to research carried out in molecular genetics, they determined that there is hybridization with the bastard turtle.
The different families of loggerhead turtle they have genetic inequality and unique qualities, for example: in the case of the caretta turtles that live between the C. Caretta and the so-called hawksbill turtles or the Mediterranean green, they are smaller on average than those of the Atlantic Ocean. The loggerhead turtles that live in the North Atlantic and the Mediterranean are descendants of colonizers of South African origin, genes that are still preserved in families today.
Anatomy and Constitution
The loggerhead turtles have a very hard shell and that corresponds to being the largest on the planet, they can weigh up to 545 kilograms and the colors of their shell are usually between yellow, orange, brown and reddish, while in the part The underside is pale yellow, while its sides and neck are brown.
Its shell is like a protective shield, however, the loggerhead turtle cannot insert its head and legs into it, so there are two parts that are its back made up of large plates, and the so-called plastron, in addition to the neck shield located at the base of its head, in this way everything connects to the carapace with the plastron.
The sexual dimorphism of Caretta Caretta only occurs in adults, adult males have longer claws and tail than females, while the plastron of males is shorter, while the carapace in males is shorter. width than that of the females, the head of these is smaller than theirs. On the other hand, when they are young, it is not possible to know if they are male or female, since both look the same, but in sub-adulthood the differences are already noticeable.
Evolution of the Loggerhead Turtle Population
Ocean turtles in general have a way of behaving at the time of adding that they are very similar to the rest, that is to say that when they go to bury their eggs they go to the beach where they were born, they last between 12 and 17 days leaving their eggs on it , which are approximately 100 to 130 eggs in position, the holes they make are large, then they cover them with sand and the female returns to the ocean.
The duration of the laying of their eggs takes approximately two hours, this occurs in areas mostly dunes, the choice of the territory they choose to nest is very important, since it has a lot of influence on the final result of the nesting. laying, such as the number of hatchlings that come out of the sand and how vulnerable they are to predators, as well as their physical condition.
Now, the population of loggerhead turtle existing in the Pacific has been reduced by 80% during the last 25 years, only 1.000 females which at the time of nesting return to the beaches where they were born, while the existing populations in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans are being reduced by in the same way, since there is currently a total of approximately 50.000, after having been millions around all the ocean waters the planet.
Loggerhead Turtle Behavior
The Carettas Carettas turtles in captivity have been monitored, so that through these studies, it has been determined that they are very active during the day, that is, they swim a lot and then rest, while at rest they stretch their front legs and stay stationary in one place, their eyes can be closed or open.
Instead, at night they sleep and are super slow when reacting, these turtles spend approximately 85% of the day in the water, especially the males, who can spend more than 4 hours in the water, and come to the surface only by about 30 minutes or less, however, it was also possible to observe that young people and adults have different ways of swimming.
These turtles have something very curious, and that is that the females attack each other, where these fights are caused by food, that is, by first accessing the areas where their food is, and that is the moment when the confrontation between females begins. to defend their food, they are also very aggressive when in captivity.
Why is the Loggerhead Turtle in danger of extinction?
This species is among the endangered reptiles, and this is due to the great threats that lie in wait for them, among these are the great predators, such as sharks and man. Although when they are in the adult stage they could try to defend themselves by biting, in the case of the young they cannot defend themselves and this is a serious problem if we want them to reproduce and grow.
It is for this reason that when the pups are born they come out at night, in this way and by instinct they avoid predators such as seagulls, vultures, crabs, crows, raccoons, dogs, among others, however, despite this, in some cases they are still devoured for these. On the other hand, when we refer to man, it is because they also represent a threat to this species, since many of them are caught by fishermen.
They are also in danger of becoming extinct due to global warming and the growth of the population on the coasts, lighting on the beaches and contamination with pesticides, oil exploitation and many other adversities that they have to suffer. These turtles at a given time were highly sought after for hunting, thanks to their edible meat and their eggs, which is to say exquisite for human consumption.
Regarding this, we have that in Mexico the eggs of this species are consumed frequently, since for the inhabitants of that region they are excellent natural aphrodisiacs, but today due to the protection of international legislation, the their capture has greatly decreased.
What many people ignore is that consuming the eggs or meat of these animals is harmful to human health, since they contain many bacteria, such as Pseudomonas Aeruginosa and Serratia Marcescens, which are transferred to the human body and It can cause deadly diseases to those who consume it.
The Carettas Carettas, migrate from Japan to Mexico and the western coast of the United States in California, in these regions coastal fishing has increased the risk of mortality and the disappearance of these turtles, where the most used way of capturing them is through the nets used by large fishing boats, which are used more by boats off the coast of California, which a year can catch approximately 6.000 loggerhead turtles.
Others usually drown after getting entangled in nets, traps, long lines that fishermen place to catch them. It should also be noted that through investigations that have been carried out, it was determined that there are different places where they feed in the center of the Pacific Ocean and these places are the most visited by their main predator, the human being.
It is also that the ocean is saturated with plastic waste that reaches the sea due to the unconsciousness in the use of these objects and due to the little culture of recycling that exists, these objects can be sheets, granules, balloons, bags, among others, and It happens that the turtles confuse them with floating jellyfish, which are part of their food and that they ingest those plastic remains, it can cause multiple health problems.
The coastal development and the great lighting drive away the turtles in search of gestation, so they do not allow their young to go to the ocean, since they opt for beaches that do not have any type of artificial lighting, and where there is little or no presence of human beings, however they are seduced by the light of the moon and the stars, so sometimes they confuse the artificial light with them and swim towards the earth where they do not have protection.
Also the constant climate changes in temperature harm the number of males and females in the babies, because depending on the temperature of the nest, the number of males and females can be established. Very high temperatures may tilt gender coefficients in favor of females.
There are nesting places that were under warm temperatures for three years, where the proportion of females was 87-99%, thus generating a disparity in their species, thus complicating the future and permanence of the species in the different oceans where they live.
This situation causes great concern, due to the fact that there is currently a great variation in the climate and its temperature throughout the planet, which indicates a greater risk of extinction of the loggerhead turtle, as well as the construction of very tall buildings in places near the beaches, reduce solar rays and therefore also reduce the tempering of the sand, which results in variation in the number of males and females, this condition favors more to male turtles.
These species are in danger of extinction according to several international federations that are in charge of their preservation, and indicate that if we do not take care of this species, it is likely that within a few years they will disappear from the planet. Reason why we must make the necessary efforts to prevent these wonderful turtles from being part of the negative statistics of extinct species, due to the hand and bad actions of the human being.
Safeguard the life of loggerhead sea turtles, evidence that they are under the protection granted to them under the Endangered Species Act, and it was in 2011 when a response was given to the request made by the Center, when the loggerhead turtle was listed as an endangered species, so the Center is committed to ensuring that these loggerhead ocean turtles have a protected habitat in both the Pacific and Atlantic.
It should be noted that in October 2012 a lawsuit was filed against the government of former President Barack Obama, seeking the protection of critical habitat for endangered Pacific loggerhead sea turtles along the US West Coast. USA and throughout the Pacific Ocean, a demand that resulted in the protection of 1.102 km of beaches in the states of North Carolina, and more than 482.000 square km in the Atlantic and Golf Oceans.
How to avoid the extinction of the Loggerhead Turtle?
After having previously explained the reasons why loggerhead turtles are in danger of extinction, we will comment on what we can do in order to prevent this from happening, everything about the measures or preventions we must take into account, then below we will We will tell how it would be possible to avoid this:
- We must protect the places where they lay their eggs and also the places where they live, that is to say, safeguard the beaches where we know they have their nests, reducing light pollution from these, since it does them a lot of damage and makes them completely lose their orientation, that is why it is very important to clean the beaches, in addition to ensuring that they are free of any type of object and that the sand is free of holes, so that they do not fall into them.
- Avoid fishing on beaches where turtle habitats are, although there are countries that have devices that exclude turtles at the time of fishing.
- Restrict the areas where these turtles are found, although this is already in the hands of wildlife protection organizations and the governments of the places where this species is found, such as the Mediterranean, South Africa, Madagascar and Australia, among others.
- Avoid or reduce pollution in the sea such as plastic waste, so that they do not eat this waste and it cannot cause illness; not only the turtles, but also the thousands of marine species that make life in the oceans and seas of the planet. Cleaning and waste collection days could even be planned in coastal areas
- In North America there are institutions such as the National Marine Fisheries Service or NOAA, which has the function of conserving and recovering these marine animals through the laws that apply in the country, in order to protect the species. The cooperation of these organizations is very important to implement these environmental conservation measures and agreements, which make proposals in fishing methods, so that these turtles are protected.
- Maintain a lot of respect for these turtles, that is, we must get involved in the change and take serious measures, such as telling tourists that they should be seen from a distance, without bothering them or giving them food, because they are not used to this and could affect their behavior.
Predators that stalk the Loggerhead Turtle
loggerhead turtles They are the possible victims of many predators, especially when they are newborn, so at that time there are several species of animals spying on them and waiting to attack.
When they are newborn or even in their eggs, there are many species that are responsible for greatly reducing the process of revolution of this species, such as some insects, pigs, Red foxBears, cats, armadillos, rats, opossums, seagulls, snakes and humans. On the other hand, when they are in the process of migrating from their nests to the ocean, the young can be preyed upon by larvae, crabs, lizards, toads, birds, and some mammals.
When they are in the sea, the predators of the hatchlings of these turtles can be fish and crabs, although it is really strange to see that adults are rarely attacked thanks to their enormous size, however they can become the food for sharks, seals and killer whales.
On the other hand, in the case of spawning females, they are attacked by salt marsh mosquitoes that can also disturb the females during spawning just like flesh flies, wild dogs and humans.
The raccoon is an animal that destroys the nesting sites of the Caretta Caretta turtles that are located in the United States, more specifically on the beaches of Florida, where there is approximately a 100% mortality rate of all turtle spawning in a season. , this is due to the increase in raccoon families in these places.
That is why the work that is done to protect the places where these turtles nest, which consists of placing metal meshes, has had its reward since the percentage of predation of ocean turtle eggs by these has been greatly reduced. raccoons.
Another place where a similar procedure was used was on Bald Head Island in North Carolina, where wire mesh boxes were used to cover the nests of loggerhead turtle that exist in that place, so that they are not excavated by red foxes and other predators.
However, there is something that is currently worrying and it is the fact that the steel used to place the meshes interferes with the normal development of newborn babies due to the ferrous wire material that is used, since this destabilizes the ability to properly navigate these baby turtles.
But it should be noted that great efforts are currently being made to find a suitable material for these meshes that does not cause this effect and that predators cannot break.
Diseases and Parasites of the Loggerhead Turtle
Turtles can present different types of diseases, among them are the following:
- Hatchlings and eggs can present diseases from infectious bacteria, ie salmonella and Pseudomonas.
- The nests can be infected by fungi, such as Penicillium.
- These turtles have in their body tissues, heart and even in their brain, a kind of worm that belongs to the Spirorchiidae family, which weakens them and causes severe inflammation due to trematodes, which can be the cause of endocarditis and diseases. neurological
- It can present a disease caused by the herpes-like virus, called fibropapillomatosis, which manifests itself in the form of internal and external tumors, which then go on to change the behavior of these animals, although they can also cause permanent blindness if they occur in the eyes of these
- The Angiostoma Carettae nematode can also cause damage to the respiratory tract of the loggerhead turtle, causing injuries. There are more than 100 types of animals from approximately 13 groups, in addition to some 73 species of algae that inhabit the back of the loggerhead turtle, It seems very hard to believe but it is true.