Leatherback sea turtle

The leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), sometimes called the lute turtle, leathery turtle or simply the luth, is the largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, reaching lengths of up to 2.7 metres (8 ft 10 in) and weights of 500 kilograms (1,100 lb). It is the only living species in the genus Dermochelys and family Dermochelyidae. It can easily be differentiated from other modern sea turtles by its lack of a bony shell; instead, its carapace is covered by oily flesh and flexible, leather-like skin, for which it is named. Leatherback turtles have a global range, although there are multiple distinct subpopulations. The species as a whole is considered vulnerable, and some of its subpopulations are critically endangered.

Leatherback sea turtle
Temporal range: Holocene
Sandy Point National Wildlife Refuge, United States Virgin Islands
CITES Appendix I (CITES)
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Superfamily: Chelonioidea
Family: Dermochelyidae
Subfamily: Dermochelyinae
Genus: Dermochelys
Blainville, 1816
Species:
D. coriacea
Binomial name
Dermochelys coriacea
(Vandelli, 1761)
Synonyms
List of synonyms
  • Testudo coriacea Vandellius, 1761
  • Testudo coriaceous Pennant, 1769 (ex errore)
  • Testudo arcuata Catesby, 1771
  • Testudo lyra Lacépède, 1788
  • Testudo marina Wilhelm, 1794
  • Testudo tuberculata Pennant, 1801
  • Chelone coriacea Brongniart, 1805
  • Chelonia coriacea Oppel, 1811
  • Testudo lutaria Rafinesque, 1814
  • Dermochelys coriacea Blainville, 1816
  • Sphargis mercurialis Merrem, 1820
  • Coriudo coriacea Fleming, 1822
  • Scytina coriacea Wagler, 1828
  • Dermochelis atlantica LeSueur, 1829 (nomen nudum)
  • Sphargis coriacea Gray, 1829
  • Sphargis tuberculata Gravenhorst, 1829
  • Dermatochelys coriacea Wagler, 1830
  • Chelyra coriacca Rafinesque, 1832 (ex errore)
  • Dermatochelys porcata Wagler, 1833
  • Testudo coriacea marina Ranzano, 1834
  • Dermochelys atlantica Duméril & Bibron, 1835
  • Dermatochelys atlantica Fitzinger, 1835
  • Dermochelydis tuberculata Alessandrini, 1838
  • Sphargis coriacea var. schlegelii Garman, 1884
  • Dermatochaelis coriacea Oliveira, 1896
  • Sphargis angusta Philippi, 1899
  • Dermochelys schlegelii Stejneger, 1907
  • Dermatochelys angusta Quijada, 1916
  • Dermochelys coriacea coriacea Gruvel, 1926
  • Dendrochelys (Sphargis) coriacea Pierantoni, 1934
  • Dermochelys coriacea schlegeli Mertens, Müller & Rust, 1934 (ex errore)
  • Chelyra coriacea Bourret, 1941
  • Seytina coriacea Bourret, 1941
  • Sphargis schlegelii Bourret, 1941
  • Dermochelys coriacea schlegelii Carr, 1952
  • Dermochelys coriacea schlegelli Caldwell, 1962 (ex errore)
  • Dermochelys schlegeli Barker, 1964
  • Dermochelys coricea Das, 1985 (ex errore)
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