Dermochelidae and Dermochelys Coriacea Family Turtles Species

Dermochelidae-Horny skin smooth, scute; carapace black with 7 narrow longitudinal ridge, white dotted plastron with 5 longitudinal ridge; upper jaw with a well‐defined cusp on each side, giving the horny beak a ‘W’ shaped appearance when viewed from the front; large flipper without claws, the anterior pair much bigger, the posterior broadly connected with the tail by a web in adults.

Dermochelidae

Dermochelys Coriacea

Dermochelys Coriacea is Body is depressed and covered by a smooth leathery skin lacking lamellae or scute. Head is small, ending in a horny beak with a well defined cusp at each side of upper jaw and a central cusp on lower jaw (beak ‘W’‐shaped when viewed from the front). Seven longitudinal ridges (including the outer or lateral pair) are on carapace and 5 on plastron. Flipper is very large, without claws.

Dermochelys-Coriacea

 Upper side is dark brown to almost black; whitish spots on neck, increasing in number on the ventral and caudal areas. Egg are white, spherical, normally about 5.5 cm in diameter and 75g in weight; the proportion of unfertilized small eggs may often be high.

Dermochelys coriacea is the least abundant sea turtle; it is present from Natal to the Tanzanian border, on Oman and the “Gulf” and on the southwest coast of India and Sri Lanka. Predominantly pelagic and
highly migratory ones are usually found in the open sea, but approaching the land seasonally. The most important nesting beaches are found on the eastern part of the Malayan peninsula (Trengganu).

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