The reproduction of sea turtles is intimately linked to the temperature of their environment. From the moment a turtle enters the sea for the first time, it lives in an environment with a more or less stable temperature. This temperature can vary over time depending, on the depth and place of the turtle’s location.

It is only female sea turtles that reach beaches when they needs to lay eggs. Copulation occurs in the oceans. In addition, temperature plays an important role in a turtle’s nesting process. Sea turtles, despite being reptiles, are able to control their internal temperature through blood flow, thanks to their large size.

It is estimated that sea turtles reach sexual maturity between 12 and 50 years of age. This maturity age-range is wide as it differentiates between species. Hawksbill sea turtles, for example, do not reach sexual maturity until 12 or 30 years of age, while loggerhead sea turtles are not sexually mature until 20 or 50 years.

This maturity is related to the size of the sea turtles or, rather, the size of its shell. A sea turtle’s shell has to reach between 60 and 98 centimeters for maturity to occur. Scientific studies have suggested that these carapaces can continue to grow once a turtle reaches maturity but, in certain species, this growth stops.

Courtship and copulation of sea turtles occur several weeks before nesting. The females are wooed by two or more males. The males have claws in their front fins, which helps to hold a female’s carapace during the mating process. The fertilization of the ovum occurs inside the female, like in birds or mammals, and always takes place in the sea.

Sea turtles lay eggs. A female will arrive at a beach between spring and summer months, usually at night. They will then dig a hole with the help of their rear fins, the depth of this hole will depend on the size of their fins. A female turtle will deposit between 50 and 200 eggs into the hole, which she will then cover with sand. Covering her eggs with sand serves several functions, which include; protecting the eggs from predators, keeping the eggs clean and regulating temperature. Turtle eggs are soft (like softened-leather) and covered in thick mucus.

Female turtles nest every two or three years. The beach where they lay there eggs can however vary.