Leatherback Sea Turtle
Leatherback Sea TurtleLeatherback Sea TurtleLeatherback Sea TurtleLeatherback Sea Turtle

Leatherback Sea Turtle

Dermochelys coriacea

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered
10–20% · With luck
overall probability at Tortuguero National Park
7 Verified records at Tortuguero National Park
June Best month highest sighting rate
☀️🌙 Day & Night When it's active Active throughout day and night

The leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea), sometimes called the lute turtle, leathery turtle or simply the luth, is a large species of sea turtle. The largest of all living turtles and the heaviest non-crocodilian reptile, it reaches lengths of up to 2.7 metres (8 ft 10 in) and weights of 500 kilograms (1,100 lb). It is the only living species in the genus Dermochelys and family Dermochelyidae. It can easily be differentiated from other modern sea turtles by its lack of a bony shell; instead, its carapace is covered by oily flesh and flexible, leather-like skin, for which it is named. Leatherback turtles have a global range, although there are multiple distinct subpopulations. The species as a whole is considered vulnerable, and some of its subpopulations are critically endangered. Wikipedia →

10–20% of wildlife watchers report a Leatherback Sea Turtle sighting in Tortuguero National Park, based on 7 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

📅 Monthly Probability

<5
Jan
<5
Feb
10–20
Mar
10–20
Apr
20–30
May
40–50
Jun
10–20
Jul
10–20
Aug
<5
Sep
<5
Oct
<5
Nov
<5
Dec

☀️🌙 When They're Spotted

Active throughout day and night · across all parks (global)

☀️🌙Day & Night
☀️🌙🌙12am6am12pm6pm12am

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is)  ·  parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Probability
1 Tortuguero National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
10–20%
2 La Amistad International Park (Panama) 🇵🇦 Panama
<5%
3 Main Ridge Forest Reserve 🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago
Insufficient data
4 Bastimentos Island National Marine Park 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data
5 Darién National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data
6 Ningaloo Marine Park 🇦🇺 Australia
Insufficient data
7 Chagres National Park 🇵🇦 Panama
Insufficient data
8 Doñana National Park 🇪🇸 Spain
Insufficient data
9 Ostional Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
10 Las Baulas Marine National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
11 Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
12 Abel Tasman National Park 🇳🇿 New Zealand
Insufficient data
13 iSimangaliso Wetland Park 🇿🇦 South Africa
Insufficient data
14 Cahuita National Park 🇨🇷 Costa Rica
Insufficient data
15 Acadia National Park 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data
16 Great Bear Rainforest 🇨🇦 Canada
Insufficient data
17 Olympic National Park 🇺🇸 United States
Insufficient data

Quick answers

What are the chances of seeing a Leatherback Sea Turtle in Tortuguero National Park?

About 15% of wildlife watchers report a Leatherback Sea Turtle sighting in Tortuguero National Park, based on 7 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.

When is the best time to see Leatherback Sea Turtle in Tortuguero National Park?

June has the highest sighting rate for Leatherback Sea Turtle in Tortuguero National Park in our monthly data.

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