Caretta caretta

Description: 

The loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) may grow to over one meter long and weigh around 110 kg or more. It reaches sexual maturity at around 35 years of age. This turtle is characterised by the large head and powerful jaws, which are used by immatures and adults in benthic habitats to crush the shells of molluscs and crustacean prey.

Loggerheads are circumglobal, occurring throughout the temperate and tropical regions of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. They occupy three different ecosystems during their lives: the terrestrial zone, the oceanic zone, and the "neritic" zone The greatest cause of decline and the continuing primary threat to loggerhead turtle populations worldwide is incidental capture in fishing gear, primarily in longlines and gillnets, but also in trawls, traps and pots, and dredges.

Loggerheads nest in relatively few countries in the Indian Ocean, and the number of nesting females is generally small, except on Masirah Island (Sultanate of Oman) which supports one of only two loggerhead nesting beaches in the world that have greater than 10,000 females nesting per year. Stu dies in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans show that loggerheads can pass decades crossing from one side of the ocean basin to another, before taking up residence on benthic coastal waters. This makes them especially subject to interactions with modern high seas fisheries, particularly longlines; coastal trawl and net fisheries may also be important.

The preceding biological information on marine turtle species found around the Indian Ocean is derived partly from the NOAA Fisheries, Office of Protected Resources, website:(http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/turtles/), supplemented by other sources (such as a website of the Australian Government, Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts -- for information on the Flatback turtle), and additional information supplied by Dr. Jack Frazier (IOSEA Advisory Committee Chair). 

 

Assessment information
CMS InstrumentsCMS, IOSEA Marine Turtles, Atlantic Turtles
IUCN StatusVulnerable
Date of entry in Appendix I1985
Date of entry in Appendix II1979
Geographic range
Countries Albania, Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Cabo Verde, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo (Brazzaville), Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa), Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Fiji, France, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lebanon, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Niue, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Syrian Arab Republic, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Tuvalu, Türkiye, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United Kingdom, United Republic of Tanzania, United States of America, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Viet Nam, Yemen
Common names
EnglishLoggerhead Turtle
FrenchCaouanne, Tortue Carette
SpanishTortuga boba
GermanUnechte karettschildkröte
Taxonomy
ClassReptilia
OrderTestudinata
FamilyCheloniidae
Scientific name Caretta caretta
Author(Linnaeus, 1758)
Standard referenceEckert, K.L., Bjorndal, K.A., Abreu-Grobois, F.A. and Donnelly, M. (Eds) (1999). Research and management techniques for the conservation of sea turtles. IUCN/SSC Marine Turtle Specialist Group Publication No.4.
Other details
Additional notesIn Effect 7/1/1999

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