The flatback turtle (Natator depressus)
The flatback turtle has the smallest geographical range of all seven species of sea turtle. It is found only in the coastal waters around Northern Australia and parts of Papua New Guinea.
The name comes from its smooth, relatively flat carapace, which is covered by a soft fleshy skin. The plates (known as scutes) of the shell are thinner than those of other turtles.
Adult flatbacks are quite big. They average around 90kg, but a large female may reach around 300kg. They are believed to reach maturity between 7 and 50 years of age. After mating, females will drag themselves ashore on sandy beaches, to lay their eggs at the top of the beach, above the high tide mark. The young also quite large when they hatch, the shell length averaging 60mm. This may help protect them from predators in their dash to the sea and in shallow water. There are relatively few scientific studies on flatback turtles, compared to, say, green or hawksbill turtles, partly due to their restricted range and the relative remoteness of much of their range. One reason for this restricted range might be that flatback turtles do not appear to undertake the same, wide-ranging, open-ocean travels that many other sea turtle species do. It seems they spend their entire lives in shallow coastal waters.
Flatbacks are fairly omnivorous, feeding on seagrass, marine algae, sea cucumbers, jellyfish, soft corals, crabs and fish. Juvenile flatbacks are predated on by sea eagles, adults will be taken by sharks and crocodiles.
This relatively large female was photographed as she emerged from the sea and hauled herself up a remote beach in the Kimberley region of Northern Australia.
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