Loggerheads are one of the world's seven species of sea turtles. The other six, in order of smallest to largest, are: Kemp's ridley, olive ridley, hawksbill, flatback, green, and leatherback. The flatback sea turtle lives primarily in Australia's coastal waters and we do not see them in the United States. Olive ridley sea turtles prefer to stay far south in the Pacific and Atlantic; they do not venture as far north as Georgia. However, the other five species are seen here in coastal Georgia. Loggerheads like Pip are the most common species we have on our coast and lay a majority of the nests here each year. Juvenile green sea turtles and Kemp's ridleys are fairly commonly seen here in Georgia. Leatherbacks can be spotted offshore when jellyfish are abundant in our waters. Hawksbills have been seen in Georgia before, but they are a rare visitor. Each species has slightly different habitat and dietary requirements; because of this, they use all parts of the ocean. Sea turtles are therefore great indicators for how healthy the ocean is, so it is important to prevent their extinction.
