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Kemp’s Ridley Turtle

The Kemp’s ridley turtle is the smallest and rarest sea turtle in the world. Despite their size, these turtles undertake remarkable migrations through the Gulf of Mexico and Northern Atlantic Ocean.

 

Kemp’s ridley sea turtles are the smallest of all sea turtle species, growing to about 55 to 75 centimeters (22 to 30 inches) in length and weighing up to 50 kilograms (110 pounds). They have a nearly circular, gray-green shell and a pale-yellow underside. These turtles are mostly found in the Gulf of Mexico and along the U.S. East Coast, favoring shallow waters with sandy or muddy bottoms. Using their slightly hooked beak, they eat a variety of foods — crabs, shrimp, jellyfish, mollusks, and even vegetation.  

Though they spend most of their lives in solitude, Kemp’s ridleys do gather in large numbers for one reason: to nest. Like their close relatives, olive ridley turtles, these turtles will nest in a large, synchronized group called an arribada. Scientists believe that nesting together like this may be a defense against predators, as it produces enough hatchlings at once to overwhelm predators and therefore increase their survival. Unlike all other sea turtle species, Kemp’s ridley turtles often nest during the day. Once hatchlings are born, they immediately enter the water, and as juvenile turtles will spend their first year or two amongst Sargassum, a type of seaweed, in the Atlantic Ocean, before settling into coastal areas as they grow. 

 

 

Kemp’s ridleys face a number of threats both at sea and on land. Historically, their numbers plummeted due to egg harvesting and accidentally being caught in fisheries. Today, they remain Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List facing a variety of threats including loss of beach habitat for nesting, vessel strikes, being captured as bycatch, pollution from oil spills and plastic debris, and climate change.

 

 

One of the most impactful ways to protect sea turtles is to prevent them from unintentionally being caught up in fishing gear. One measure to do this is Turtle Excluder Devices, which allow sea turtles to escape shrimp nets deployed by trawlers and are 97% effective at allowing sea turtles to escape. These devices are mandatory in certain areas of Mexico where Kemp’s ridley turtles live and are also required by many U.S. shrimp trawlers. Oceana campaigns to protect sea turtles and other species from a variety of destructive fishing practices as well as to protect ocean habitat, curb plastic pollution, and stop dirty offshore drilling from polluting our oceans and accelerating the climate crisis.

 

 

 

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