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leatherback Definition

leather·back (-bak′)

noun

the only species (Dermochelys coriacea) of a family (Dermochelyidae) of tropical sea turtles, covered with a tough, leathery upper shell: it is the largest living turtle, weighing up to c. 725 kg (c. 1,600 lb)

leatherback Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • nest: Biometric Data: Several types of data will be collected from nesting leatherbacks.
  • save: Professor Graeme Hays, from Swansea Universityâs School of the Environment and Society, has led international efforts to save the leatherback from extinction.

Adjective modifier

  • large: The largest leatherback ever recorded was in Wales in 1988.
  • giant: Beginning in mid February the giant leatherbacks make their way across the Caribbean to the brown sand beaches.
  • female: In 1980 it was estimated that there were 126,000 adult female leatherbacks in the eastern Pacific.

Modifies a noun

  • turtle: In January 2004 a male leatherback turtle was washed up close to death on a beach in North Carolina.
  • bycatch: The significance of the leatherback bycatch is unknown, however, this species is listed as being globally endangered.

Noun used with modifier

  • adult: Adult leatherbacks are regularly recorded in cool temperate waters around the world.