Very HardArchelon
Archelon ischyros
AR-keh-lon· “ruling turtle”
🌊 Marine reptile🕰️ Cretaceous🥩 carnivore🦴 Protostegidae
4 m
Length
1 m
Height
2.2 t
Weight
The largest sea turtle ever known — over 4 metres from flipper to flipper — with a leathery shell of bony struts instead of a solid plate. It cruised the Western Interior Seaway feeding on jellyfish and shellfish. A marine reptile, not a dinosaur.
When
Late Cretaceous, ~80–74 million years ago
Found in
United States
Discovered
George Reber Wieland, 1895
Did you know?
- The largest sea turtle ever found, over 4 m across the flippers.
- Its shell was a framework of bony struts under leathery skin, not a solid dome.
- Likely fed on jellyfish and shellfish in the Cretaceous seaway.
Artwork: Conty, Wikimedia Commons, Public domain.