Marine turtles in UK seas

You can help protect endangered marine sea turtles by providing information about your encounters with these spectacular creatures in UK waters.
Report a turtle sighting

Marine turtles have been around for millions of years and play a vital role in balancing marine ecosystems, especially controlling jellyfish numbers.

Our Turtle Code includes a turtle ID guide and what to do if you come across a turtle on the shore.

Check the Turtle Code

 

6 marine turtles recorded in the UK

Leatherback

The leatherback, the largest marine turtle, is the species most frequently recorded in UK waters.

They can grow up to 2.91 metres in length and up to 916kg in weight. They have a flexible, leathery shell with pronounced ridges, which is black with white spots.

Leatherbacks are unique among reptiles in that they can metabolically raise their body temperature above that of their immediate environment, allowing them to survive in colder waters.

Each summer, leatherbacks migrate to UK waters where they feed on jellyfish.

A leatherback turtle swimming in the ocean, it is surrounded by remora fish

Kemp’s ridley

Kemp’s ridley turtles are the smallest sea turtle species in the world and are also the most endangered.

The Kemp's ridley has a triangular-shaped head with a slightly hooked beak. Its shell is often as wide, or wider, than it is long. Adults have an almost circular greyish-green top shell, with a yellow or cream bottom shell. Hatchlings are black on both sides.

Each of the front flippers has one claw while the back flippers may have one or two. Kemp’s ridleys grow up to 1 metre in length, but juveniles, which are around 30-50cm, have been found in UK waters.

A Kemp's ridley turtle laying on a beach

Olive ridley

The olive ridley turtle is a similar size to its sister species, Kemp’s ridley, growing up to 80cm and weighing less than 50 kg.

Despite being the most abundant, this sea turtle has only been recorded in UK waters once.

The olive ridley gets its name from its heart-shaped, olive-green coloured shell. Males and females grow to the same size, but females have a slightly more rounded shell. The olive ridley turtle has one or two claws on each flipper and a similar underside to Kemp’s ridley, but with five to nine pairs of costal scutes.

An Olive Ridley sea turtle swimming in just below the ocean surface

Green turtle

The green turtle is found throughout the world, living in the coastal areas of more than 140 countries.

They grow up to 1.5 metres and have a rounded facial profile.

Green turtles are the only herbivore species of sea turtles, eating mostly seagrasses and algae. This diet is what gives their fat a greenish colour – which is where their name comes from.

Adult green turtles have dark olive or grey shells with dark blotches, and juveniles’ shells are chestnut coloured.

A top down view of a green turtle swimming above a seagrass meadow

Loggerhead

Loggerhead turtles are named for their large heads and powerful jaws, which allow them to crush hard-shelled prey like clams and sea urchins.

They have a reddish-brown, heart-shaped shell, on which juveniles have small spikes along the spine. Other animals in its ecosystem are dependent on the loggerhead for survival, making it a ‘keystone species’. Their shells home over a hundred species of animals such as barnacles, crabs and algae.

Loggerheads grow up to 1.5 metres, but juveniles - which are 30cm-50cm - are also found in UK waters.

A loggerhead turtle swimming along the seabed. Behind it is a diver.

Hawksbill

Hawksbills are named for their narrow, pointed beaks which are perfect for finding food sources in hard-to-reach cracks and crevices. Their heads are tapered, and their lower jaw is V-shaped, giving them a hawk-like appearance.

Hawksbills have mottled shells with various shade of brown and amber and a black tortoiseshell pattern. Their shells also have overlapping scales which form a serrated-look on the edges.

Hawksbills are the only species of sea turtle that can survive on a diet consisting largely of sponges. They are mainly found in tropical waters and are rarely encountered in the UK’s seas.

A hawksbill turtle swimming above an ocean reef. It is swimming toward the camera

One final species of marine turtle

Flatback

The flatback turtle is the only species which hasn’t been recorded in UK waters to date. It has the smallest geographic range of all marine turtle species and is restricted to the coastal waters of Australia and Papua New Guinea.

A hawksbill turtle swimming above coral, it is looking at hte camera

Report a turtle sighting

You can help in the effort to protect endangered marine sea turtles by providing information about your encounters with these spectacular creatures in UK waters.

Report now

If you have any photos to submit, please email them to info@mcsuk.org tag us on social media @mcsuk with the hashtag #TurtleSighting

What to do if you find a sick, stranded or entangled turtle

You might come across turtles out at sea or beached on the shore. Here are some tips on what to do should you encounter one that needs help.

  • At sea: Marine turtles will drown if trapped underwater, but prompt action can save them. AVOID TOWING TURTLES TO SHORE. They should be disentangled and released at sea wherever possible. Leatherback turtles should NOT be hauled aboard a boat.
  • On shore: Do NOT return any hard-shelled species to the water (in the UK), they are usually young turtles that are stunned by the cold water. Wrap the turtle in a dry towel, without covering the nostrils. Report the turtle as soon as possible.

A turtle that is entangled or trapped is likely to be stressed so always approach calmly and cautiously. Large turtles deliver a serious bite and a blow from a flipper can be painful, so be careful.

For detailed information about who to contact if you find a sick, stranded or entangled turtle, download our Turtle code leaflet.

Check the Turtle Code

Threats to marine turtles

Over the last 200 years, human activities have had a negative effect on their survival with six out of seven species now threatened with extinction.

In UK waters, threats include:

  • Accidental entanglement in fishing gear: Although turtles can dive to great depths, they become stressed and drown when trapped underwater by fishing gear. Fishing gear discarded at sea may also entangle and kill turtles.
  • Marine litter: Plastic is especially dangerous because turtles mistake it for jellyfish. Once ingested, plastic can block a turtle’s gut leading to starvation.
  • Boat collisions: Turtles often bask and must surface regularly to breathe, leaving them vulnerable to boat strike.
A hawksbill turtle swimming while entangled in a blue discarded fishing net
PLEASE BE VIGILANT, AND DO NOT DISCARD FISHING GEAR OR LITTER AT SEA.

 

Marine turtles are protected

Marine turtles are legally protected but there is no offence if turtles are caught accidentally in fishing gear. Nor is it an offence to help turtles if entangled or stranded, or to temporarily hold dead turtles for later examination by experts.

This project is funded by the Government's Green Recovery Challenge Fund. The fund was developed by Defra and its Arm's-Length Bodies. It is being delivered by The National Lottery Heritage Fund in partnership with Natural England, the Environment Agency and Forestry Commission.