Common name: Leatherback Turtle

Scientific name: Dermochelys Coriacea

Local name: Penyu Belimbing

Leatherback turtles, the largest, deepest diving and most migratory and wide ranging of marine reptiles, live almost their entire lives at sea. Leatherback turtles are different from other sea turtles in that they have a soft, cartilaginous shell rather than a hard bony one. It is from the appearance of the shell that the "Leatherback" name comes. Their streamlined shape and larger flippers reflect their more migratory and ocean-bound lifestyle. They can reach a total length of 2.1m with a weight of 365kg.

This rare sea turtle lives in warm sea waters and is known to breed off the West Indies, Florida, the northeastern coasts of South America, Senegal, Natal, Madagascar, Sri Lanka and Malaysia.

In Malaysia, the leatherback turtle used to nest in profusion on the mainland beaches of Terengganu along Rantau Abang. However, the Malaysian breeding population is approaching extinction with not a single turtle landing recorded in 2000. Migrating long distances between their feeding and nesting sites, leatherback turtles survive mainly on jellyfish and other soft-bodied sea animals.

Leatherback turtle numbers are mainly threatened by accidental capture by fishing industries, illegal egg collection, loss of nesting habitats due to beach erosion, coastal development and marine pollution.