The flat back sea turtle

Scientific name: Natator depressus

photo credit: https://images.app.goo.gl/9ZVees2EZELJpZU59

The flatback sea turtle is a small turtle compared to other turtles from around the world. The flat back sea turtle only grows 3.25 feet in carapace length which is very small. The turtle's weight is also very light compared to other sea turtles in adulthood they only weigh around 198 pounds. The diet of the flat back sea turtle has a lot of variety; they eat sea cucumbers, jellyfish, mollusks, prawns, bryozoans, other invertebrates and seaweed. These turtles also eat jellyfish overall they eat soft-bodied prey. They live in several different places near Australia and Papua New Guinea in the Pacific , they only live in those areas. They are usually found in bays, coastal coral reef and grassy shallows. These types of turtles usually nest 4 times per season, they lay 50 eggs which is a lot for a sea turtle. In the endangered list they are considered vulnerable under the Australian Environment Protection & Biodiversity Conservation Act. These turtles are vulnerable because of several reasons like humans harvesting their eggs and oil spills and entanglement in fishing and shrimp nets.

sources: https://oceana.org/marine-life/sea-turtles-reptiles/flatback-turtle

https://conserveturtles.org/information-about-sea-turtles-flatback-sea-turtle/