# Green sea turtle (*Chelonia mydas*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/green-sea-turtle  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) is a reptile in the turtles and tortoises subgroup, belonging to the family Cheloniidae in the order Testudines. It is a large reptile with an adult body mass of 144 kg, and our sources report adult weights from 128.1 to 160 kg. It lays a clutch of 112.5 eggs at a rate of 1.03 clutches per year, the eggs incubate for 59 days, and sexual maturity comes at 10 years, with values up to 40 years reported. Its lifespan is given as 75 years, and it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 128.1 kg – 160 kg |
| Length | up to 1.5 m |
| Lifespan | 75 years |
| Diet | Omnivore |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | marine |
| Egg incubation | 59 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 85 – 200 |
| Age at maturity | 9.99 years – 40 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1.03 |
| Reproduction | Eggs |
| Active | Day and night (cathemeral) |
| Lifestyle | Marine |
| Migration | Migratory |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Reptilia
- order: Testudines
- family: Cheloniidae
- genus: Chelonia
- species: *Chelonia mydas* (Linnaeus, 1758)

Synonyms: *Caretta cepedii*, *Caretta esculenta*, *Caretta thunbergi*, *Chelonia agassizi*, *Chelonia agassizii*, *Chelonia albiventer*, *Chelonia bicarinata*, *Chelonia castanea*, *Chelonia formosa*, *Chelonia grisea*, *Chelonia japonica*, *Chelonia lachrymata*, *Chelonia lata*, *Chelonia maculata*, *Chelonia maculosa*, *Chelonia marmorata*, *Chelonia midas*, *Chelonia mydas agassizi*, *Chelonia mydas carrinegra*, *Chelonia mydas japonica*, *Chelonia mydas mydas*, *Chelonia picta*, *Chelonia tenius*, *Chelonia tenuis*, *Chelonia virgata*, *Chelonia viridis*, *Euchelus macropus*, *Mydas viridis*, *Natator tessellatus*, *Testudo cepediana*, *Testudo chloronotus*, *Testudo japonica*, *Testudo macropus*, *Testudo macropus*, *Testudo marina vulgaris*, *Testudo mydas*, *Testudo rugosa*, *Testudo rugosa*, *Testudo viridis*

## Common questions

### How heavy is a green sea turtle?

An adult green sea turtle weighs 144 kg, and our sources report adult weights from 128.1 to 160 kg.

### How long does a green sea turtle live?

The green sea turtle has a lifespan of 75 years.

### What kind of animal is the green sea turtle?

The green sea turtle is a reptile in the turtles and tortoises subgroup, placed in the family Cheloniidae and superfamily Chelonioidea.

### How many eggs does a green sea turtle lay?

A green sea turtle lays 112.5 eggs per clutch, with 1.03 clutches per year. The eggs incubate for 59 days.

### When does a green sea turtle reach sexual maturity?

A green sea turtle reaches sexual maturity at 10 years, and our sources report values up to 40 years.

### Who named the green sea turtle?

The green sea turtle, Chelonia mydas, carries the authority (Linnaeus, 1758).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4), CC BY 4.0, v1-2. Oskyrko, O., Mi, C., Meiri, S. et al. (2024) ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles. Scientific Data 11: 243. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03079-5. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/green-sea-turtle