Green Turtle

The only sea turtle that becomes predominantly herbivorous as an adult, grazing seagrass beds and algae — a diet that gives its body fat a greenish colour and the species its common name. Juveniles are more omnivorous, taking jellyfish and other invertebrates before shifting to plants.

Sabah's Turtle Islands Park and Sipadan are among the region's best-known nesting and feeding sites; females return to natal beaches to lay eggs, digging a nest chamber above the tideline before covering it and returning to the sea.

Endangered, with historical declines driven by egg harvesting, hunting for meat and shell, and ongoing threats from fisheries bycatch and coastal development at nesting beaches.