Endangered Olive Ridley Sea Turtles

1. Endangered Olive Ridley Sea Turtles By: Sophia Sakopoulos & Isabelle Smith Robert Louis Stevenson Middle School 2nd Period 4th Quarter

2. The Olive Ridley Sea Turtle

3. Basic Facts • Common name: Olive Ridley • Scientific name: Lepidochelys Olivaceaf • Named after it’s olive green shell • Adults get to about 2 to 2.5 feet • Adults weigh 77-100 pounds

4. Interesting Facts • When they are born their shells are grey they turn all green • They have two visible claws on each flipper • They are related to the Kemp’s Ridley but Olive Ridleys live in warm water • They are the smallest sea turtles weighing up to 100 pounds • They usually live 50 years • Males tails stick up behind their shells

5. Why Endangered? • In India people are building a huge deep water port and the mouth of the Dharma River • The largest Olive Ridley nesting beach is there • Every winter half a million of the turtles meet in the shallow water then the females travel for the Arribada • For the first time in 2008 there were was no Arribada • Oil spills, people taking the eggs, litter, and artificial light are preventing the Olive Ridley sea turtles to survive

6. Human Impact • Females and babies are disturbed by trash on nesting beaches left by humans • If a piece of trash is close enough to a female she will return to the ocean and not nest • Turtles die when they eat trash mistaking it for jellyfish • Noise is bad and has the same effect • Thousands of sea turtles get caught in fishing nets and die • They are effected by artificial lights on beaches • People illegally collect turtle eggs for food • They are also hunted for meat, shells, and fat • Propellers also hit sea turtles injuring them and making them vulnerable to attack

7. Habitat • They are often found in coastal bays and estuaries • They typically forge in surface waters or dive into depths of 500ft on the bottom eating crustaceans • They live in the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans • They like muddy or sandy bottoms where prey can be found

8. Mating and Birth Cycle • Turtles don’t form couples • Neither sex provide parenting after nesting • The male only provides the sperm • The female leaves the eggs once they are laid • Females look for good genetic qualities in males so their babies will be smart, tricky, sly, and brave • Females lay 50-100 eggs • The eggs hatch 45-70 days after they are laid • It takes them several day to dig themselves out of the hole

9. Video • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhsxVpZb-cQ

10. Nesting • One of the most extraordinary nesting in the world is the Olive Ridley • Large groups of turtles gather off shore then all of the sudden thousands of female turtles come ashore and nest • The nesting is known as an Arribada • During Arribada females come to lay eggs • The nesting density is so high that females will dig up old eggs to lay new ones • No one knows what triggers and Arribada

11. Food Web Olive Ridley’s Food Web Humans Sharks Whales Crocodiles Olive Ridley Sea Turtle Mollusks Crustaceans Small Fish Jellyfish Algae

12. How We Can Help! • We can not throw our trash into the ocean • Not go on nesting beaches • We can turn off lights on the beach because baby Olive Ridleys go back to the same beach and if there are lights it confuses them • Dogs dig up sea turtles eggs so keep your dogs off the beach

13. We Helped! We had a bake sale for the Olive Ridley sea turtles. We made cupcakes, cookies, and lemonade! We made $42.25, but we were only there for one hour so we feel good about the amount. People were very interested about helping them in fact on girl screamed her car, “Look, they are helping sea turtles, I love turtles, rock on!”

14. Video of Other People Helping • http://www.worldwildlife.org/species/finder/marineturtles/marineturtles.html

15. Works- Cited • Caribbean Conservation Corporation. 5/10/2010. http://www.cccturtle.org/seturlteinformationphp?page=olive-ridley. • NOAA Fishers Office Of Protected Resources. 5/11/2010. http://www.hmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/turtles/oliveridley.htm • The Wild Foundation. 5/11/2010. http://www.wild.org/field-projects/endangered-olive-ridley-turtles/ • Orits, Rudy M. et.al. “Predation Upon Olive Ridley Sea Turtles by the American Crocodile at Playa Nancite, Costa Rica” June 28, 1997: 2-2 • Sea World Sea Turtles. 5/12/2010. http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/seaturltes/stlongevity.html • Oxford Journals. 5/13/2010. http://jhered.Oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/9212/2067 • Means, Bruce D. “Sea Turtles.” World Book Advanced. World Book,2010.web. 14 May 2010 • Olive Ridley Sea Turtle. National geographic. 5/17/2010. http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/olive-ridley-sea-turtle • Sea Turtle. Photograph. June 19,2007. http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1239/553140408_fffa55f330.jpg • Olive Ridley Sea Turtle Arribada. Photograph. October 5,2009. http://www.qondio.com/img/images/files-4/15277.jpg • Librahim, Mohamed.We Can Do It. Photograph. http://www.clker.com/clipart-24353.html

16. Acknowledgements We would like to thank Mr. Pham for providing the computers and giving constructive criticism when we needed it most. Also thanks to our moms Carolyn Duryea and Lisa Hinz for supplying the lemonade and baked goods for our stand!