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The leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), sometimes called the lute turtle, leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to 2.7 metres (8 ft 10 in) and weights of 500 kilograms (1,100 lb).
Dermochelyidae is a family of sea turtles which has seven extinct genera and one extant genus, containing one living species, the leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea). The oldest fossils of the group date to the Late Cretaceous .
The turtle shell is a shield for the ventral and dorsal parts of turtles (the order Testudines), completely enclosing all the vital organs of the turtle and in some cases even the head. [1] It is constructed of modified bony elements such as the ribs, parts of the pelvis and other bones found in most reptiles.
For a long time, modern Leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys) were believed to be descended directly from Psephophorus, [9] specifically the species P. polygonus. [10] However, a 1996 analysis by Wood et al. proved that most of the taxa in the two genera were not connected, meaning Psephophorus could not be a direct ancestor of the modern leatherbacks. [9]
The largest living species of turtle (and fourth-largest reptile) is the leatherback turtle, which can reach over 2.7 m (8 ft 10 in) in length and weigh over 500 kg (1,100 lb). [9] The largest known turtle was Archelon ischyros , a Late Cretaceous sea turtle up to 4.5 m (15 ft) long, 5.25 m (17 ft) wide between the tips of the front flippers ...
Most sea turtles lay their eggs at night, but a Palm Beach woman was in the right place at the right time, saw a leatherback turtle do it during the day. "Like winning the lottery."
A large leatherback sea turtle is swimming freely thanks to the efforts of a Florida fish and wildlife officer assigned to the Florida Keys. A large leatherback sea turtle got tangled in a lobster ...
The family includes some of the largest sea turtles that ever existed. The largest, Archelon, had a head one metre (39 in) long. Like most sea turtles, they had flattened bodies and flippers for front appendages; protostegids had minimal shells like leatherback turtles of modern times.