KEMP'S (ATLANTIC) RIDLEY SEA TURTLE 



Lepidochelys kempii Carman 



KINGDOM Animalia 



CLASS Reptilia 



ORDER Testudinata 



FAMILY Cheloniidae 



OTHER COMMON 



NAMES Mexican ridley, 



Atlantic ridley, Tortuga lora. 



DATE 



Entered into SWIS to be determined. 



Updates. .22 September 1976, 25 February 1977. 



LEGAL STATUS 



Federal: Endangered (35 FR 18310, 2 De- 

 cember 1970) 



States: Endangered: Florida, Georgia, Mary- 



land, New Jersey, South Carolina, 

 Texas. 



CREDIT: P. C. H. PRITCHARD 



Protected: Alabama, North Carolina. 



REASONS FOR CURRENT STATUS 



Overuse by man is the primary factor respon- 

 sible for the present small numbers of sea turtles. 

 Diurnal nesting on a single beach in Mexico makes 

 this turtle particularly susceptible to predation by 

 man and wild animals. Commercial harvesting of 

 eggs and skin has played a significant role in the 

 decline (lUCN 1968). Harvesting has recently 

 (1966) been prohibited by the Mexican goven- 

 ment, but no upward trend in population num- 

 bers has been observed (Pritchard and Marquez M. 

 1973). Predation by wild animals is acute, espe- 

 cially on hatchlings. Crabs, fish, reptiles, birds, 

 and mammals are predators; adult predation is 

 limited to sharks (Rebel 1974). 



Because of aggregate nesting on a single beach, 

 Rancho Nuevo in TamauHpas State, Mexico, any 

 habitat modification there could result in loss of 

 the entire breeding population. 



Sea turtles are caught incidental to commer- 

 cial fishing activities. Some turtles drown in 



