Seven Sea Turtle Facts - Oceana Canada
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June 16, 2016

Seven Sea Turtle Facts

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To celebrate World Sea Turtle Day, we’re counting down some of our favourite sea turtle facts.

1) Sea turtles cannot pull their limbs and head inside their shell, unlike other freshwater turtles and tortoises

loggerhead sea turtle

2) Sea turtles are among the oldest creatures on earth, and have been around for more than 100 million years

3) Three species of sea turtles can be found in Canadian waters; Leatherback (Dermochelys coriacea), Loggerhead (Caretta caretta) and Green (Chelonia mydas)

green sea turtle

4) Leatherbacks are the largest turtles on earth

5) Female sea turtles return to the beach where they were born to lay their eggs

green sea turtle

6) Leatherback sea turtles found off the east coast of Canada migrate from as far south as Trinidad

7) Entanglement in fishing gear is one of the biggest threats facing sea turtles

bycatch sea turtle

Check out this video for more amazing facts about sea turtles!