Appearance and lifestyle:
The olive ridley turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) is so named for the olive-green colour of its shell. It is the smallest turtle in South African waters, weighing 35kg on average. Overseas, olive ridleys display a behaviour called arribada, where hundreds of thousands of turtles nest on a beach at the same time.
Habitat:
They have scattered breeding in the western Indian Ocean which also includes northern Mozambique, and they are occasional migrants to the east coast.
Diet:
The olive ridley turtle is mostly carnivorous, feeding on jellyfish, crabs, and snails.
Threats:
Olive ridley turtles are on the IUCN Red List as vulnerable; they are vulnerable and declining in number. Some of the threats they face are plastic pollution, poaching, and climate change.
Olive Ridley turtles are solitary, preferring open ocean.
The Olive Ridley turtle is mostly carnivorous, feeding on jellyfish, crabs and snails.
Olive Ridley turtles are the most abundant turtle species, although it is still vulnerable to population decline.