Aquila Children's Magazine AQUILA Magazine Best Bits | Page 86

The waters around Greece and its
archipelago aren’t just an ancient
history hotspot, they are also home to
some awesome sea creatures. The
loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta)
is a case in point. It was cruising
around the Aegean Sea long before
Socrates was even a hatchling.
Sadly though, these shell-dwelling
creatures are now listed as
vulnerable.
A RELIC FROM THE
PAST
Loggerhead turtles are positively
ancient. They’ve been around since
the cretaceous period. Their shells
feel like wet rock. They have soft,
bumpy necks, and flippers. Their
carapace (shell) can measure up to 1
metre in length and an average-sized
adult can weigh up to 150 kg – that’s
about the same as 23 Pepes. They (the
turtles, not the Pepes) are generally
solitary animals, but they do come
together for migration and to breed.
Loggerheads are found all over the
world. They play a central role in the
food chain, participating in the health
of the oceans in ways that may not
seem immediately obvious. You see,
each turtle is like a travelling reef;
plants and animals attach to their
shells. The turtles give these
hitchhikers a safe place to live and an
easy way to travel to other parts of
the ocean.
A PLACE TO GROW
Loggerhead hatchlings love the calm,
warm waters of the Mediterranean,
especially around the Greek islands,
and many ride there on the ocean
currents and use the inlets and bays
as a place for maturation – it’s a