Introduction
簡介
Sea turtles have roamed the oceans for at least 150 million years. They are among Earth’s oldest surviving animals, having lived during the time of the dinosaurs.
海龜至少在海裡暢遊了1.5億年了。是地球的最古老的一種生物，從恐龍時代就有了。
Like dinosaurs, sea turtles are reptiles, and like all reptiles, sea turtles are cold-blooded.
像恐龍一樣，海龜是爬行動物，像所有爬行動物一樣，海龜是冷血動物。
They have scaly skin, breathe air, and have a heart with three chambers.
它們有布滿鱗片的皮膚，呼吸空氣，並且擁有三個心房的心臟。
Sea turtles have many living turtle relatives, including freshwater turtles, snapping turtles, tortoises, and soft-shelled turtles. All of these turtles live either on land or in freshwater. Sea turtles are the only turtles that live in the saltwater of the world’s oceans.
海龜有很多活著的龜類親屬，包括淡水龜，鱷龜，烏龜，和甲魚。這些龜類都生長在淡水中或在陸地上。海龜是唯一一種住在世界上的鹹水海裡的龜類。
Types of Sea Turtles
海龜的種類
Sea turtles are divided into two types. One type, called the leatherback, is covered with leathery skin. Beneath this skin is a shell made of cartilage and thousands of tiny bones. The cartilage forms prominent ridges that give the leatherback its unique appearance. The leatherback is the largest of all sea turtles and the most widely distributed. It lives far out to sea except during breeding season.
海龜被分成了兩種：第一種，叫稜皮龜，它身上布滿了粗糙的皮膚。在這層皮膚下面是用軟骨組織和上千塊小骨頭組成的殼。軟骨組織製成的脊背給了稜皮龜它獨有的外表。稜皮龜是海龜中最大的，還是最廣泛分布的。除了繁殖季節以外，他們在遠離海岸的地方生活。
All types of sea turtles other than the leatherback have a shell made of bony plates, or scutes. The top part of the shell is called the carapace. The part of the shell under the turtle’s belly is called the plastron. These two parts are connected to the muscles and bones inside the turtle’s body. The number and pattern of the scutes is helpful in identifying the type of sea turtle.
除了稜皮龜 ，其他海龜都有一個用骨頭製作的板塊和盾板製成的殼。 殼的上面的部分叫甲殼。海龜肚子下面那塊殼叫胸甲。這兩塊殼連著海龜身體裡面的肌肉和骨頭。盾板的數量和花紋有助於幫助人區分海龜的品種。
The green turtle is a medium to large sea turtle with a shell that has mottled markings. The green turtle’s head is small relative to its body when compared with other sea turtles. It lives in many oceans around the world.
綠海龜是一種有雜色殼的中至大的一種海龜。綠海龜的頭跟身體比較起來比其他海龜都要小。它生活在世界各地的海洋裡。
The black turtle is sometimes called the Pacific green turtle. Researchers disagree on whether it is a type of green turtle. The back turtle is dark gray with stripes of other dark colors. It lives on the west coasts of North and South America. The black turtle prefers to live in warm bays and protected shores, and is rarely found in the open ocean.
黑龜有時被叫做大西洋綠海龜。研究者對它否是一種綠海龜有分歧。黑龜是深灰色的並且有其他深色的條紋。它生活在北美和南美的西海岸。黑龜更偏向於生活在溫暖的海灣和被保護的岸上，並且很難在開闊的海洋裡找到它們。
The loggerhead turtle is large reddish-brown sea turtle. It has an extremely large head for，the size of its body. Loggerheads live along the coast in tropical and subtropical waters and the world.
蠵龜是一種紅棕色的海龜。對於它的身體來說，它有一個巨大的腦袋。蠵龜沿著世界上熱帶和亞熱帶的海岸線中生活。
The hawksbill is a small to medium sea turtle with a hawklike beak. Its shell has a distinctive pattern of thick, overlapping brown scales. It lives in and around shallow coastal waters in and around coral reefs.
玳瑁龜是一種中小型並長著一張像鷹一樣的嘴的海龜。它的殼有用厚實的、重疊的棕色鱗片而組成的特別圖案。它住在沿海的淺水區和珊瑚礁周圍。
Kemp’s ridley, one of the smallest sea turtles, has an oval shell that is black during juvenile years, changing to olive gray during adulthood. The Kemp’s ridley has one of the most restricted ranges of all sea turtles. Adults are rarely found outside of the Gulf of Mexico, and almost all Kemp’s ridleys nest on a five-mile stretch of beach in Mexico.
肯氏龜是最小的海龜之一，它有一個橢圓形的並且在未成年時而變成黑色的，在成年時變成橄欖灰色的殼。成年海龜很難在墨西哥灣以外找到，並且基本上所有的肯氏龜的巢穴都能在5英裡的墨西哥的海灘上找到。
The Australian flatback lives in shallow waters off the coast of northern Australia and Papua New Guinea. It stays close to the shore, never venturing into the open ocean. It prefers to live around coral reefs and grassy inlets. The Australian flatback has a flat body with a smooth shell that is olive gray with lighter edges.
平背海龜住在北澳大利亞和巴布亞紐幾內亞獨立國的淺水區。它總是靠近海岸線，從來沒有膽子進入開闊的海洋裡。它更傾向於生活在珊瑚礁周圍和長滿水草的水灣裡。平背海龜有一個平平的身體和一個有著淺色邊緣的光滑的殼。
Physical Appearance
外貌特徵
Sea turtles very greatly in size. The largest is the leatherback, which can grow as large as 2.2m(7.2ft) and weigh up too 700kg(1500lbs). The smallest sea turtles are the olive ridley and Kemp’s ridley. They may measure up 71cm(28in) and weigh up to 45kg(100lbs). Adult male and female sea turtles of each species are equal in size.
海龜非常大。最大的是稜皮龜，它能長到2.2米（7.2英尺），體重達到700公斤（1500磅）。最小的海龜是太平洋麗龜（頭橄欖海龜）和肯氏龜。它們的體長可達到71釐米（28英寸）並體重45千克（100磅）。各種品種的成年雄性和成年雌性海龜大小差不多。
Sean turtles are strong, graceful swimmers and divers whose streamlined bodies are well adapted to life in the ocean. Long front flippers provide the power for propelling through the water. The hind flippers are used as rudders for steering. When sea turtles are active, they need to return to the water’s surface every few minutes in order to breathe. When testing or sleeping, the can remain under water without breathing for two hours or more.
肖恩海龜是既強壯，又優美的遊者和潛水者，流線型的身體完美地適合海裡的生活。修長的前腳蹼提供了在水中向前推動的力量。後腳蹼是改變方向的方向盤。當海龜非常活躍時，它們需要每幾分鐘回到水的表面來呼吸。當棘手的的時候（比如說有獵食者來追它們時）或者睡覺的時候，它們就可以2小時甚至更長時間在水下不呼吸。
Like all turtles, sea turtles have jaws that are beaklike in shape and lack teeth. The unique jaw shape of each species is and adaptation to its unique diet. Some sea turtle are carnivorous (meat eating),some are herbivorous (plant eating),and some are omnivorous (eating both meat and plants). Green sea turtles are herbivorous as adults. Leatherbacks feed mainly on soft-bodied animals such as jellyfish. Loggerheads eat crabs, jellyfish, and mollusks.
像所有龜類一樣，海龜有像鷹一樣的頜並缺少牙齒。各種生物獨特的頜適應著它們獨特的飲食習慣。有些海龜是食肉動物（只吃肉），有些海龜是食草動物（只吃草），有些動物是雜食動物（肉和草都吃）。綠海龜在成年時是食草動物。稜皮龜主要吃軟性體質的動物，就像水母。蠵龜吃螃蟹，水母，和軟體動物。
Nesting
築巢
Sea turtles live almost their entire lives in water. Females come onto sandy beaches mainly to lay their eggs. Sea turtles are awkward and slow-moving on land, as well as being nearsighted. Because of this, they are more vulnerable to attack by predators while on land.
海龜的一生中幾乎都在水裡生活。雌性海龜來到布滿沙子的沙灘上，主要是來產它們的蛋。海龜即緊張，又慢吞吞地在沙子上爬行，就像是近視一樣。因為這點，它們在陸地上對捕食者更易受攻擊。
Most females return to the same nesting beach every year. They come ashore at night, alone, usually during high tide. A female chooses a spot above the high tide line so her eggs will not get washed away. With her front flippers, she digs a pit for body, then digs an egg cavity with her hind flippers.
大多數雌性每年回到同樣的產卵沙灘。它們在通常在漲潮時晚上獨自上岸。為了它的蛋不被衝走，雌海龜會選擇一個遠離海岸線的地方來產蛋。用它的前腳蹼，它會為身體挖一個坑，然後用它的後腳蹼來挖一個埋蛋的洞。
The female sea turtle lays her eggs in the egg cavity. Depending on the species, she may lay between 50 and 200 eggs. The eggs, which look like Ping-Pong balls, have soft shells and do not break as they fall from her body. When the female has laid her eggs, she use her hind flipper to cover them with sand. The sand keeps the eggs hidden form predators and keeps them warm so they will incubate.
雌性海龜把它的蛋埋在坑裡。按品種來說，它可以產50-200個蛋。像桌球一樣的蛋，有軟軟的殼，並從它身體掉出來時不會碎。當雌性產蛋時，它用它的後腳蹼來用沙子把它們埋起來。沙子可以把蛋很好地從獵食者的眼裡藏起來，並且讓它們保持溫暖，這樣它們就會快快孵化。
When a female sea turtle comes on land to lay her eggs, she often looks as though she is crying. This is because of a gland that helps rid her body of excess salt. While on land, the 「tears」 help to keep sand out of her eyes while she is digging her nest.
當一隻雌海龜來到陸地上來產卵時，它經常看上去在哭泣。這是因為腺體幫助它排出體內多餘的鹽分。在岸上時，「眼淚」幫助它在挖洞時不讓沙子進到眼睛裡去。
Sea turtle eggs hatch between 45 and to days after being laid. Hatchlings usually wait until night to emerge from the nest. They are very vulnerable to predators when they first hatch. Nighttime is a safer time for them to make their way to the water. Still, many hatchlings do not survive the trio to the ocean.
海龜蛋在被產大概45天以後會孵化，幼崽一般都等到夜晚才從巢穴裡出來。當它們剛剛孵化時，它們對獵食者來說非常易受攻擊。晚上對於它們進入海洋是一個更安全的時間。但還是，很多幼崽都活不過去海洋的旅程。
Hazards
不可避免的危險
Adult sea turtles have few natural enemies. Sharks are the main predators, especially tiger sharks. Sea turtle eggs and hatchings are eaten by fish, dogs, seabirds, raccoons, ghost crabs, and other predators. More than 90 percent of hatchlings are eaten by predators. Only about 1 in 1,000 sea turtles survives to maturity.
成年海龜有一些來自自然的敵人。鯊魚是最主要的獵食者，特別是虎鯊。海龜蛋和幼崽會被魚、狗、海鳥、浣熊、沙蟹，和其他獵食者吃掉。1000個海龜蛋中只有1個可以存活直到成年。
The most serious dangers to all kinds of sea turtles come from human impact. Nesting areas are scarce because of building construction along beaches. Lights, noise, trash, and activity on beaches can discourage adult females from coming on shore. All of these things also confuse hatchlings, who may accidentally head away from the ocean instead of toward it.
對海龜來說更嚴重的危險來自於人的影響。因為沿著海灘建造建築，產卵的地方開始減少。燈光、噪音、垃圾，和在沙灘上的活動可以組織雌海龜來岸邊。所有這些事情影響著海龜幼崽，它們有可能不小心離海洋越來越遠而不是離海洋越來越近。
Some sea turtles die from eating trash. Leatherbacks often mistake plastic for jellyfish and die when it clogs up their digestive system. Sea turtles can also die from injuries caused by collisions with boats.
有些海龜因吃垃圾而死。稜皮龜經常把水母錯吃成塑料，然後因為它堵住消化系統而死。海龜也可以因為和船相撞的傷而死。
Protecting Sea Turtles
保護海龜
Thousands of sea turtles drown each year in shrimp nets. United States law requires shrimp fishermen to use a Turtle Excluder Device (TED) on all shrimp nets, which is a trap door inside the shrimp net that allows sea turtles to escape. TEDs have saved the lives of many turtles. However, some shrimp fishermen do not follow the law. Shrimp net without Teds continue to be a danger to sea turtles.
上千的海龜會在捕蝦網中溺死。美國法律規定捕蝦漁民需在所有網上使用「龜類漏網裝置」，也就是一個捕蝦網上的逃生洞，可以讓海龜逃生。龜類漏網裝置救了很多海龜的命。但是，有些捕蝦人不遵守法律。沒有龜類漏網裝置的漁網對於海龜來說還是一個危險。
Sea turtles are also hunted for their shells, which are used to make combs, eyeglass frames, and souvenirs. Another danger to sea turtles is the illegal collection of their eggs for food. Green turtles and other sea turtles are also hunted illegally for their meat.
海龜也因為它們的殼而被獵殺，它們的殼可用於製造梳子，眼鏡框，還有紀念品。海龜的另一個威脅是非法收集它們的蛋來食用。綠海龜和其他海龜也為了吃它們的肉而被非法獵殺。
All eight species of sea turtles are threatened or endangered in the United States. It is illegal to harm or interfere with a sea turtle or its eggs. An international treaty protects all species of sea turtles, and over 100 countries have been banned the import or export of sea turtle products. Still, many people break laws or are careless. Sea turtle protection must be improved considerably if they are to survive into future.
全部8種海龜在美國都被威脅著或在危險之中。對一隻海龜或者它的蛋進行傷害或影響是違法的。一個保護所有品種海龜的國際條約，大約有100多個國家都在禁止進口或出口海龜產品。但還是有人違法或者不在意。如果海龜要在未來存活，那必須要大大地改善海龜的保護。
Many people in many countries are working to keep sea turtle numbers from dwindling. Volunteers in many nesting areas put screens over the nests to keep out predators, and post warning sighs to alert beachcombers to the presence of nests. Eggs laid too close to the water are often moved to the higher ground.
很多國家有很多人在不讓海龜的數量減少。志願者在很多築巢區把罩子放在巢穴上面來阻止獵食者進入，還貼警告牌來提醒沙灘拾荒者有巢穴的存在。離海岸太近的蛋會移到更高的陸地上。
People are also working to protect important nesting sites by making them wildlife refuges. Also, many clinics help to rescue and give medical attention to injured sea turtles.
人們還通過把重要的築巢區變成野生動物保護區的庇護所。還有，很多診所幫助受傷海龜進行醫療護理。
Some zoos and aquariums have captive sea turtles. Sea turtles are much happier in the wild. But it is also good for people to learn about sea turtles and watch them up close. People can also learn about the many hazards to sea turtle survival caused by humans. Hopefully, enough people will care about sea turtles to preserve their habitats and help them to survive.
有些動物園和水族館有圈養的海龜。海龜在野生環境裡會快樂得多。但這對人們學習海龜並且近距離觀察它們有好處。人們也可以學到人類對海龜生存的威脅。希望，足夠多的人們會關注海龜去保護它們的生存環境並且幫助它們去生存。
（圖片來自於網絡）