green sea turtle

They look green underwater, since red is the first color to be filtered. So somehow their name does make sense ;). Almost any place I freedive in the Philippines I encounter them.

Green turtles are streamlined and strong swimmers. They are the largest of the hard shelled sea turtles and contrary of their name, do not appear green. Instead, they have green tissues on the underside of their bodies. It is more likely that these turtles were named for their meat that humans consumed, considering their nicknames ‘Soup Turtle’ and ‘Edible Turtle’. The actual shell color of the Green turtle is brown or olive with occasional light and dark patches. Unlike some turtles, the green turtle’s shell has no barnacles or other creatures on its surface. Adult females are 175-485 lbs., males are slightly smaller. The Green turtle lives in tropical and warm marine waters worldwide.