The 7 Species of Sea Turtles
There are seven kinds of sea turtle swimming our oceans today. Tap a button to sort them and see how they compare.
Leatherback
Dermochelys coriacea
Vulnerable · IUCN 2013- Size
- Up to 6–7 ft
- Weight
- Up to ~2,000 lb
- Eats
- Jellyfish
- Lives
- ~45–50 years
- Found
- Worldwide — even cold seas
The largest turtle on Earth, with a leathery shell, and the deepest diver — over 1,000 m down.
Green
Chelonia mydas
Least Concern · IUCN 2025- Size
- Up to ~4 ft
- Weight
- Up to ~400 lb
- Eats
- Seagrass & algae
- Lives
- 60–70 years
- Found
- Tropical & subtropical seas
The only sea turtle that is a plant-eater as an adult — its greenish fat gives it its name. Numbers have climbed since the 1970s, and in 2025 it became the first sea turtle moved OFF the threatened categories.
Loggerhead
Caretta caretta
Vulnerable · IUCN 2015- Size
- Up to ~3.5 ft
- Weight
- Up to ~400 lb
- Eats
- Crabs, conch, shellfish
- Lives
- 50–70+ years
- Found
- Worldwide temperate & tropical
The most common nesting sea turtle on the U.S. East Coast — including the beaches of North Carolina.
Flatback
Natator depressus
Data Deficient · IUCN 1996- Size
- Up to ~3 ft
- Weight
- ~200 lb
- Eats
- Soft corals, sea cucumbers
- Lives
- Not well known
- Found
- Australia; feeding into Indonesia & Papua New Guinea
All known nesting sites are in Australia; feeding grounds also extend into Indonesian and Papua New Guinean waters.
Hawksbill
Eretmochelys imbricata
Critically Endangered · IUCN 2008- Size
- Up to ~3 ft
- Weight
- ~100–150 lb
- Eats
- Sea sponges
- Lives
- 50–60 years
- Found
- Coral reefs, tropics
Its beautiful patterned shell made it a target for the “tortoiseshell” trade — a big reason it’s so rare today.
Olive Ridley
Lepidochelys olivacea
Vulnerable · IUCN 2008- Size
- Up to ~2.5 ft
- Weight
- ~75–110 lb
- Eats
- Omnivore
- Lives
- ~50 years
- Found
- Tropical Pacific, Indian, Atlantic
The most abundant sea turtle — famous for “arribadas,” when thousands nest on one beach at once.
Kemp's Ridley
Lepidochelys kempii
Critically Endangered · IUCN 2019- Size
- Up to ~2 ft
- Weight
- ~75–100 lb
- Eats
- Crabs
- Lives
- ~30+ years
- Found
- Gulf of Mexico & NW Atlantic
The smallest and rarest sea turtle in the world, nesting mainly on a single stretch of Mexican coast.
Conservation status follows the IUCN Red List and can change as populations recover or decline. See where each species lives on the map, or read about why sea turtles are endangered and their life cycle.