Loggerhead Turtles – Ecology, Habitat, Threats and IUCN Conservation Status

Context

A recent study warns that Loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) are facing an unprecedented existential crisis due to the combined “four-pronged” impact of climate change.

About Loggerhead Turtles

• Distribution: Found in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, as well as the Mediterranean Sea.
• Characteristics
  • They are named for their relatively large heads, which support powerful jaws
  • Unlike the Green Sea Turtle (which is a herbivore), Loggerheads are primarily carnivores.
  • The sex of the hatchlings is not determined by genetics but by the incubation temperature of the sand. “Hotter is Femaler”, “Cooler is Maler”.
  • Loggerheads use the Earth’s magnetic field to navigate during their long-distance migrations
  • They are slow-growing and long-lived, often taking 20 to 35 years to reach sexual maturity.
• Threats from Climate Change
  • Extreme Feminization (TSD)
  • Hatchling Dehydration and Stunting
  • Sea-level rise is eroding nesting beaches. When turtles encounter sea walls or urban infrastructure, they have no place to retreat, a phenomenon known as Coastal Squeeze.
  • Rising sea temperatures are shifting the distribution of their primary prey (crabs, mollusks, and jellyfish). Turtles are forced to travel further for food, leading to “energetic exhaustion.”
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN Red List:Vulnerable (though some sub-populations are Endangered).
  • CITES: Appendix I (Trade is prohibited).
  • CMS (Bonn Convention): Appendix I and II.
  • Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I

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