Home › Reptilia › Cheloniidae › Olive Ridley Sea Turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea)
SPECIES PROFILE
Olive Ridley Sea Turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea)
Lepidochelys
IUCN STATUS
Vulnerable
CONSERVATION STATUS
Vulnerable
CLASS
Reptilia
GEOGRAPHICAL RANGE
Tropical Pacific and Atlantic; major Pacific nesting beaches in Mexico (Oaxaca), Costa Rica, and India
DIET
Omnivore
HABITAT
Tropical and subtropical Pacific and Atlantic coastal waters; nests on tropical beaches; one of the most ocean-going sea turtles
🔬 Classification
PHYLUM
Chordata
CLASS
Reptilia
ORDER
Testudines
FAMILY
Cheloniidae
GENUS
Lepidochelys
📋 Description
SIZE
60–70 cm carapace; 35–50 kg — the smallest and most abundant sea turtle
COLORATION
Olive to grey-green heart-shaped carapace; pale yellowish underside; 6–9 pairs of costal scutes (variable); blunt head
ADAPTATIONS
Synchronised mass nesting (arribada) where thousands to hundreds of thousands nest simultaneously on a single beach — the largest reptile aggregation on Earth
🌿 Ecology
HABITAT
Tropical and subtropical Pacific and Atlantic coastal waters; nests on tropical beaches; one of the most ocean-going sea turtles
DIET
Omnivore
GEOGRAPHIC RANGE
Tropical Pacific and Atlantic; major Pacific nesting beaches in Mexico (Oaxaca), Costa Rica, and India
REPRODUCTION
Female returns to natal beach every 1–3 years to nest; lays 1–3 clutches per season of 100–110 eggs; 45–65 day incubation
DIET DETAILS
Jellyfish, crustaceans, fish, and algae; a highly opportunistic feeder
⚠️ Threats & Conservation
PRIMARY THREATS
Egg poaching despite legal protection; bycatch in trawl fisheries; beach development; climate change affecting incubation temperatures
💡 Interesting Facts
1
Playa Escobilla in Oaxaca hosts the largest Olive Ridley Sea Turtle nesting event in the world — an arribada in September 2010 counted over 560,000 turtles nesting on a single beach.
2
The mass synchronised nesting of Olive Ridleys is called an "arribada" (Spanish for arrival); the evolutionary advantage is thought to be predator saturation — so many eggs are laid that predators cannot eat them all.
🔭 Sighting Guide
📍 BEST PLACES TO SIGHT
Playa Escobilla near Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, hosts one of the world's largest Olive Ridley sea turtle arribadas
Playa Morro Ayuta near San Pedro Pochutla, Oaxaca, is another major Olive Ridley nesting beach in southern Mexico
Playa Tierra Colorada near Acapulco, Guerrero, has Olive Ridley arrivals on the Pacific coast
🗓️ BEST TIME TO SIGHT
August to December for arribada nesting events; Playa Escobilla near Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, has nocturnal mass nesting events open to supervised viewing.
🎯 SIGHTING TIPS
Autumn. Playa Escobilla in Oaxaca hosts one of the world's largest sea turtle mass nestings (arribada) — up to 500,000 turtles arrive in September.
