Sea Turtles: An Extraordinary Natural History of Some Uncommon Turtles

Front Cover
Voyageur Press, 2006 - Nature - 132 pages
Streamlined and equipped with flippers, sea turtles seem uniquely adapted for water-yet remain firmly attached to land, where the females lay their eggs each year. They sport the many colors of the rainbow, range in weight from 100 to 1,300 pounds, and figure in the mythology and folklore of cultures around the world. And still, they currently risk extinction. In this book, marine biologist Blair Ernest Witherington, who has devoted decades to these ancient creatures, offers readers an in-depth look into their mysterious world. Accompanied by exquisite photographs, his descriptions comprise a personal introduction to these strangely graceful marine reptiles. Detailed, lively, and up-to-date imagery tells the story of sea turtles’ distant origins, their specialized form and undersea challenges, senses and life cycle, world voyages and navigational talents—and their ecological roles. The most comprehensive overview of sea turtles to date, this book portrays each of the seven species in close-up, offering information on appearance, distribution, movements, life history, reproduction, diet, unique traits, and conservation.
 

Contents

Sea Turtles
7
Form and Function
15
Life Cycle and Life History
27
From Sea to Land to Sea
35
World Voyagers
43
The Role of Sea Turtles
57
The Species
65
Sea Turtles and Humans
125
Recommended Reading
132
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About the author (2006)

Blair Ernest Witherington has pursued his interest in sea turtles for twenty years. With graduate degrees centered on sea turtle biology and conservation, he has worked with Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Marine Research Institute and has held a number of appointments that have addressed sea turtle conservation problems—including President of the International Sea Turtle Symposium, member of the Marine Turtle Specialist Group of the IUCN, Loggerhead Sea Turtle Recovery Team, and adjunct assistant professor in the Department of Zoology, University of Florida. Witherington’s published works include more than 40 scientific articles, monographs, and book chapters, and a volume on the loggerhead sea turtle which he co-edited. He lives with his wife Dawn in Floridana Beach and works as a biologist and research scientist at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Research Institute in Melbourn Beach, Florida.

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