Sea Turtle Saragussm Mat

Most blend in with the sargassum their bodies camouflaging.

Sea turtle saragussm mat.

Most turtles steered clear of the continental shelf but there was a lot of variation in their routes. But when the algae comes. Sargassum hildebrandtii grunow herbarium type specimen somalia before 1889. Sea turtles are generally found in the waters over continental shelves.

A number of turtles left the north atlantic subtropical gyre and entered the sargasso sea a. Young turtle hatchlings even hitch rides on these floating mats as they venture into the open ocean. Many species call sargassum home including sea turtle hatchlings fish shrimp crabs and more. Green sea turtles in particular are often found in sargassum mats in which they find shelter food and water.

The sargasso sea is a vast patch of ocean named for a genus of free floating seaweed called sargassum while there are many different types of algae found floating in the ocean all around world the sargasso sea is unique in that it harbors species of sargassum that are holopelagi this means that the algae not only freely floats around the ocean but it reproduces vegetatively on the high seas. Turtles use sargassum mats as nurseries. Birds of all kinds search the sargassum for these species to eat. During the first three to five years of life sea turtles spend most of their time in the pelagic zone floating in seaweed mats.

Five species of sea turtles that pass through the atlantic have been recorded there and for at least three of these species the loggerhead caretta caretta green turtle chelonia mydas and hawksbill eretmochelys imbricata the sargasso sea is vitally important. October 16 2015 the young loggerhead sea turtle its ridged shell only a few inches across is perched calmly among the floating islands of large brown seaweed known as sargassum open ocean stretches for miles around these large free floating seaweed mats where myriad creatures make their home. Unfortunately these mats of sargassum occasionally wash ashore a problem that has made the news over the last few years. In the sargasso sea alexandra gulick and nerine constant collected data on water temperature in sargassum mats.

These mats come from the sargasso sea in the north atlantic ocean which is surrounded by four ocean currents. The algae clumps can be a few inches to a couple of miles long and also provides other sea life with a source of food. At sea sargassum provides vital shelter for a variety of species.