Leatherback Sea Turtle

There are three major, genetically distinct populations. The Atlantic Dermochelys population is separate from the ones in the eastern and western Pacific, which are also distinct from each other.
While nesting beaches have been identified in the region, leatherback populations in the Indian Ocean remain generally unassessed and unevaluated.
Recent estimates of global nesting populations are that 26,000 to 43,000 females nest annually, which is a dramatic decline from the 115,000 estimated in 1980. These declining numbers have energized efforts to rebuild the species, which currently is critically endangered.