Mainly carnivorous, food items include various crustaceans, molluscs, jellyfish, and fish. Nesting often involves huge concentrations of females. Not known to nest in Egypt.
Vulnerable
A moderately sized marine turtle; largest recorded specimen has a carapace length of 735 mm. Carapace depressed, slightly elongate, smooth; scutes juxtaposed; posterior edge with moderate indentations; with 6-8 coastal scutes; first marginal scute not in contact with first vertebral scute. Head large, triangular, with 2 pairs of prefrontals. Front limbs with a single claw, hind limbs with 2 claws. Males smaller, with longer tails and larger claws. Color of carapace and dorsal sides of limbs and head uniform olive gray. All ventral sides yellowish white.
Vagrant to Egyptian Red Sea waters, where it has been recorded at least three times, all in the 1970s, off the South Sinai coast. Two animals were caught in nets at Dahab and Nuweiba, and 2 animals were observed "off the southern tip of Sinai"
Pan-tropical species, recorded about 5 times in the Red Sea. Nearest breeding site is on Masirah Island, Oman, where some 150 females nest annually.
Warm tropical and subtropical marine waters, prefers shallow waters.
