One of favorite field trips this semester in Herpetology class was our field trip to the SC Aquarium. It was at the aquarium that I got a chance to see actual live sea turtles up close and personal for the first time! They were so cute, beautiful, and graceful. One of the turtles I saw is known as the Atlantic Ridley Sea Turtle (Lepidochelys kempii). It was in a caring unit, meaning that it was still recovering from a previous injury of some sort (I can not remember exactly what happened to the turtle). They are considered to be critically endangered in nature. They are relatively small sea turtles reaching about 2-3 feet as adults. The Ridley Sea Turtle at hte aquarium seemed to be about 1 feet long. Since, its body coloring was relative darkish black, I assume that it was still a young one, since nautrally as they mature, they become more green. I could not tell the gender. Like all sea turtles, it has a pointed beak with well-adapted flipper-like front limbs. Its body is dorsoventrally depressed. In nature, they prefer living in warmer water, however, has been known to migrate pretty far up north. They can be found along the Atlantic Coast on the Eastern side of the United States. (Michelle Hou, SC)
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