Flatback Sea Turtle

The flatback sea turtle (Natator depressus) is a marine turtle found only on Australia's continental shelf and in neighboring waters of Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, giving it the smallest range of any sea turtle species. Its shell is flatter and more domed than other sea turtles, with unusually thin, fragile scutes, and it lays comparatively few, larger eggs per clutch, around fifty per nesting. It is omnivorous but leans carnivorous, feeding on soft corals, sea cucumbers, shrimp, and jellyfish in shallow coastal waters. The IUCN lists it as Data Deficient for lack of population information, though Australia classifies it as Vulnerable.