Green Sea Turtle
The Green Sea Turtle, a large docile marine reptile, is found throughout the world, mainly in tropical areas. Its flesh and, especially its eggs, are food in many parts of the world. Because it is easily killed and its eggs are gathered, it is threatened with extinction.
An adult has an upper shell about three feet long. It weighs three-hundred to four-hundred pounds. Although it is called the green sea turtle it is most commonly brown. The turtle migrates from pastures of sea grass growing in shallow water to nesting beaches that may be hundreds of miles away. Females gather off the tropical beaches, mate with males lurking there, then go up the beaches during the night to dig nests in which they lay one-hundred or more eggs. The female returns to the sea by dawn. Hatchlings slowly make their way to the sea, usually encountering many enimies along the way.