﻿LEATHER-BACK 
  TURTLE. 
  333 
  

  

  Family 
  DERMOCHELYDIDAE. 
  

  

  Dermochelys 
  coriacea 
  (Linne). 
  

  

  Marine 
  Leather 
  Turtle; 
  Luth: 
  Leathery 
  Turtle; 
  Leather-baok 
  Turtle; 
  Trunk 
  

   Turtle; 
  Harp 
  Turtle; 
  Lyre 
  Turtle. 
  

  

  Plate 
  17, 
  Figs. 
  1-4. 
  

  

  Tcstudo 
  coriacea 
  Linne, 
  Syst. 
  Nat., 
  ed. 
  12, 
  1766, 
  vol. 
  1, 
  p. 
  350. 
  

   Dermochelys 
  coriacea 
  Boulenger, 
  Cat. 
  Chel. 
  Brit. 
  Mus., 
  1889, 
  p. 
  10. 
  

  

  The 
  Leatherback 
  Turtle 
  is 
  the 
  largest 
  of 
  the 
  living 
  Chelonians. 
  It 
  is 
  unique 
  among 
  

   turtles 
  in 
  that 
  the 
  vertebrae 
  and 
  ribs 
  are 
  not 
  fused 
  with 
  the 
  carapace, 
  but 
  are 
  free 
  within 
  it, 
  

   thus 
  constituting 
  it 
  a 
  distinct 
  suborder. 
  Agassiz 
  compares 
  its 
  form 
  to 
  a 
  "flattened 
  cone 
  with 
  

   angular 
  sides, 
  to 
  which 
  are 
  appended 
  .in 
  front 
  a 
  large 
  head 
  with 
  a 
  pair 
  of 
  larger 
  naked 
  paddles, 
  

   and 
  behind 
  a 
  smaller 
  pair 
  of 
  very 
  broad 
  rudders." 
  John 
  Ford 
  has 
  related 
  the 
  experiences 
  of 
  

   some 
  seamen 
  who 
  once 
  captured 
  a 
  Leatherback 
  Turtle 
  and 
  could 
  not 
  identifj' 
  it, 
  the 
  captain 
  

   maintaining 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  "Old 
  Nick" 
  himself. 
  " 
  I'nf 
  ortunatelj', 
  however, 
  for 
  their 
  future 
  

   prospects," 
  he 
  says, 
  "it 
  proved 
  to 
  belong 
  to 
  the 
  species 
  under 
  consideration, 
  'more's 
  the 
  pity,' 
  

   perhaps." 
  

  

  Size. 
  — 
  Turtles 
  measuring 
  nine 
  feet 
  in 
  total 
  length 
  have 
  been 
  reported 
  by 
  fishermen, 
  but 
  

   doubtless 
  these 
  measurements 
  were 
  somewhat 
  exaggerated. 
  Six 
  or 
  seven 
  feet 
  is 
  probably 
  a 
  

   reliable 
  average 
  for 
  most 
  adults. 
  Gadow 
  (1901, 
  p. 
  333) 
  states 
  that 
  the 
  biggest 
  specimen 
  in 
  

   the 
  British 
  Museum 
  is 
  about 
  six 
  and 
  one-half 
  feet 
  long 
  from 
  the 
  nose 
  to 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  shell, 
  

   which 
  latter 
  is 
  about 
  four 
  feet. 
  Ditmars 
  (1907, 
  p. 
  G) 
  describes 
  one 
  in 
  the 
  American 
  Museum 
  

   of 
  Natural 
  History 
  with 
  a 
  total 
  length 
  from 
  snout 
  to 
  end 
  of 
  tail 
  of 
  six 
  feet, 
  length 
  of 
  carapace 
  

   five 
  feet 
  one 
  inch. 
  Sears 
  (1886) 
  measured 
  one 
  with 
  a 
  total 
  length 
  of 
  seven 
  feet 
  thxce 
  inches. 
  

   The 
  largest 
  specimen 
  in 
  the 
  Museum 
  of 
  the 
  Boston 
  Society 
  of 
  Natural 
  Flistorj^ 
  has 
  a 
  total 
  

   length 
  of 
  eighty-three 
  inches 
  and 
  carapace 
  of 
  fifty-seven 
  inches: 
  outer 
  curve 
  of 
  arm 
  from 
  

   corner 
  of 
  carapace, 
  forty-one 
  inches. 
  

  

  Weight. 
  — 
  Numerous 
  weight 
  records 
  exist, 
  but 
  as 
  many 
  of 
  these 
  are 
  estimated, 
  they 
  are 
  of 
  

   relative 
  value 
  only. 
  I 
  have 
  omitted 
  weight 
  records 
  approximated 
  by 
  fishermen 
  and 
  quoted 
  

   in 
  the 
  newspapers 
  from 
  time 
  to 
  time 
  as 
  being 
  unreliable 
  and 
  too 
  high. 
  Even 
  Agassiz's 
  state- 
  

   ment 
  that 
  he 
  has 
  "seen 
  specimens 
  weighing 
  over 
  a 
  ton," 
  I 
  beUeve 
  to 
  be 
  exaggerated. 
  Three 
  

   Leatherbacks 
  taken 
  in 
  Long 
  Island 
  Sound 
  during 
  the 
  summer 
  of 
  1875 
  were 
  all 
  said 
  to 
  weigh 
  

   "about 
  1000 
  pounds." 
  Definite 
  and 
  reliable 
  records 
  do 
  exist, 
  however, 
  such 
  as 
  the 
  following: 
  

   a 
  specimen 
  weighing 
  740 
  pounds 
  by 
  Hornaday 
  (1914, 
  vol. 
  4, 
  p. 
  51); 
  one 
  by 
  Ditmars 
  (1907, 
  

   p. 
  6) 
  weighing 
  715 
  pounds; 
  one 
  by 
  Boulenger 
  (1914, 
  p. 
  15) 
  weighing 
  "just 
  over 
  1,500 
  pounds." 
  

  

  