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Step 1
Observe the basic body plan of a sea turtle. The body is flattened dorsoventrally with the legs being well adapted for paddling.
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Step 2
Identify individual species by the shape of the beak and arrangement of the scutes on the carapace. The carapace is a hard shell in all species except for the leatherback, which has bony plates underneath it skin.
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Step 3
Examine the size of sea turtles. They are generally 2 to 4 feet long, except for the leatherback which grows up to 7 feet.
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Step 4
Study the geographic distribution of sea turtles. They can be found in all oceans except for the Arctic Ocean, but adults are most commonly found near coral reefs where they feed on sponges, crustaceans and sea grass, depending on the species.
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Step 5
Learn the life cycle of sea turtles. They only come ashore to lay eggs, usually on the same beach where they were hatched. In the extreme case of the Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, virtually all egg-laying females come ashore on the same night at the same beach to lay eggs.
