Wildlife

*Read chapters 11 (p. 183-193) and 12 (p. 197-215) in Spotila, then answer the questions below.

1) While the leatherback has a soft carapace, the flatback has the densest and hardest

carapace of all sea turtles. a. True b. False

2) Since sea turtles are cold-blooded, they can’t exist in the frigid North Atlantic Ocean.

a. True b. False

3)

This leatherback is crying because: a. the process of laying eggs is very painful b. none of these answers is correct c. the sand from the beach is irritating the eye d. it is ridding its body of excess salt e. it is shedding excess heat through evaporative transfer f. the process of crawling on land is very difficult

4) The flatback is immune to the factors affecting the populations of other sea turtle

species because it is limited in distribution to the continental shelf of Australia, and Australia has very strong turtle protection laws.

a. True b. False

5) What is the scientific name of the leatherback turtle?

6) Rain is no problem for most sea turtle hatchlings. In fact, the cool beach and overcast sky provides protection from the sun and predators.

a. True b. False

7) Proportional to its body size, the flatback turtle produces the largest egg of any sea

turtle. These large eggs may be an adaptation for surviving on very hot nesting beaches. a. True b. False

8) Today, there are about 35,000 adult female leatherbacks in the world, with most of

them in the eastern Pacific. a. True b. False

9) What is the scientific name for the flatback turtle?

10) Flatback embryos will die if the nest temperature exceeds 90 degrees F (32 degrees C).

a. True b. False

11) The major flatback nesting colonies are located between Australia and New Zealand.

a. True b. False

12) Unlike all other species of sea turtles, flatbacks lack an oceanic phase.

a. True b. False

13) When leatherback nests are undisturbed by predators and people, hatching success can

be as high as 90%. a. True b. False

14) Although leatherbacks can eat jellyfish, it simply isn’t possible for these large turtles to

support their caloric needs with a prey (jellyfish) that is made up primarily of water. a. True b. False

15) Unlike other sea turtles, the scutes on the carapace of the leatherback seem to repel ocean plants and animals from attaching to it.

a. True b. False

16) Spotila estimates that an individual leatherback in the Pacific is likely to be caught on a longline fishing hook:

a. once per year b. once every 3-5 years. c. once every 6-10 years d. once every 2 years e. leatherbacks are so rare in the Pacific, that they aren’t caught at all.

17) “CITES” stands for:

18) The _________________ is the largest turtle in the world.

19) Sea turtle tags have evolved over the years, from plastic and metal flipper tags to PIT (“passive integrated transponder”) tags. All tags have a similar failure rate, however, so standardization is not an issue.

a. True b. False

20) _____________________ are capable of diving to great depths on one breath. They are

also capable of swimming and feeding in cold waters due to their ability to keep their internal temperature higher than the ambient temperature.