What Do Sea Turtles Eat ?

Sea turtles also known as marine turtles have wandered the oceans for around 110 million years. These can be found throughout the world, from California waters to the Coral Triangle warm beaches. Males of sea turtles species never leave the oceans, while females descend to lay their eggs on the sandy beaches amid the nesting season.  

There are 7 species of sea turtles found in the world. Five of these species are found in and around Florida, all of which feed on a different diet. Wondering what do sea turtles eat?

Actually, all seven species have different dietary preferences. The diet of sea turtles is determined by the age and species. It is important to know the natural diets and dietary needs of each species of sea turtle to help them recover soundly.

Sea Turtles Diet – What do they eat ?

The diet varies by species. Some of the species of sea turtles change their eating habits with age Sea turtles can be carnivorous, herbivorous or omnivorous. The jaw structure of many species refers to their diet.

Some of these species feed on jellyfish, sponges and other marine life. However, some turtles that have a stronger jaw feed on oysters. However, not all sea turtles eat meat.

The green turtle is an herbivorous animal that does not eat meat at all. Instead, they eat algae and play an important role in the conservation of coral reefs. If you are thinking of what do sea turtles eat, here is the detail of what do sea turtles eat

• Loggerhead

Offspring are omnivorous which means they eat both plants and animals, but adult carnivores prefer whelks, conchs, and crabs.  

• Green

The fully developed sea turtles are herbivorous and want to walk along the reef to get rid of algae. Newborn turtles, however, are omnivorous.

• Hawksbill

A bird’s beak that gives it a name that allows hawksbill turtles to reach coral reef cracks to access sea sponges and is all that they want.

• Leatherback

Leatherbacks arealso known as gelatinivores. This means they eat only invertebrates, such as sea squirts and jellyfish.

• Flatback

This species of sea turtle will eat everything from shrimp to seaweed.

• Kemp’s ridley

Meat is the only thing on the Kemp menu, with a strong preference for crabs.

• Olive ridley

Another type of delicious animal feeds on sea cucumber, jelly, fish and many other animals and plants.

Some of the species change their eating habits with age. The hawksbill turtle has a narrow, jaw-shaped head that responds at an acute angle, and is adapted to obtain food from cracks in coral reefs. They eat mainly sponges, but sometimes a small amount of shrimp, squid, and tunicates.

Green carnivores are primarily carnivorous from hatch to juvenile size and then move to the herbivorous diet. Green turtles have well-distributed jaws and are adapted to a basic vegetarian diet consisting of algae. As adults, they are mostly herbivorous sea turtles, although sometimes they also eat sponges and jellyfish.