
The olive ridley sea turtle, also called as Lepidochelys olivacea or Pacific ridley, is a type of small sea turtle. The carapace of an adult olive ridley has a length of 60 to 70 centimeters. The carapace is heart shaped with four pairs of pore-supported located infra-marginally on the bridge, two pairs present pre-frontally and about nine lateral scutes on each side. The asymmetry and variability in the number of lateral scutes are notable features of these turtles. The lateral scutes range from five to nine plates per side. The carapace is flattened on the dorsal surface and has the highest point just anterior to the bridge. The head of an olive ridley turtle is medium in size, broad in appearance and is triangular upwards. The sides of the head are most concave on the upper part of a short snout. The forelimbs are paddle like and each has two claws anteriorly. The carapace is green to olive in color, however sometimes it has a reddish hue due to growth of algae on the carapace. The turtle shell, or plastron, along with the bridge is greenish white in younger turtles and creamy yellow in older olive ridley turtles. They usually weigh over 50 kilograms, with females being heavier than males. Younglings usually weigh around 12 to 23 grams. Hatchlings have a dark grey carapace with a length up to 50 mm. The olive ridley sea turtles are sexually dimorphic. Males that have reached sexual maturity have a long, thick tail that is used to copulate, and a big, hooked claw on the front flipper that is for grabbing the female at the time of copulation. Their carapaces are also long and tapered while females have a circular, dome like carapace. The shell of males is more concave and softer, which is thought to be another adjustment for mating. Olive ridley sea turtles chiefly live in shallow salt water around the depth of 22 to 55 meters. They are mainly carnivorous species. They prey on protochordates and invertebrates. Their usual diet includes jellyfish, sea urchins, snails, crabs, tunicates, bivalves, shrimps, rock lobsters, bryozoans, and sipunculid worms. When lacking food substance, they tend to feed on some filamentous algae. Olive ridley sea turtles primarily dwell in tropical and warm waters such as of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. They are said to be globally profuse. They are found in oceans and seas from India, Japan, Arabia, Japan, Micronesia, New Zealand, Australia, western Atlantic coast of Africa, Brazil and Venezuela. On the eastern pacific side, they are found in Chile, California, Costa Rica, Oregon and Galapagos Islands. Their population is increasingly declining due to the lack of number of nesting spots. Some of the nesting sites are Costa Rica, Mexico and Northern Indian Ocean.
Olive Ridley Sea Turtles in Pacific Coast of Costa Rica
Playa Ostional is a beautiful beach located on the northern side of Playa Nosara. The Ostional Wildlife Refuge is a 33.1 square meters wildlife shelter on the beach. Known to have great challenging waves for surfers, it is also one of the biggest and most important nesting sites of olive ridley sea turtles. Migration to the beach takes place during the months of July, August, December and January. Over thousands of olive ridley turtles come to the shores to lay eggs. Playa Nancite and Santa Rosa National Park are serenely remote places in Guanacaste Province of Costa Rica and are important nesting sites for olive ridley sea turtles.
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References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olive_ridley_sea_turtle
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