You might just be lucky enough to see a green turtle like Tom if you are out in a small boat around the Hebrides but you are more likely to see a leatherback turtle which is a bit larger and brown or grey. Green turtles like Tom like to live in warm water since they can't change their body temperature. They are ectotherms which means their body temperature stays the same as their surroundings. Humans are endotherms and we can keep our body temperature constant - at 37°C.

All turtles are reptiles and this means that they are all ectotherms but the leatherback turtle is very special and can keep itself a little bit warmer so they can live in the cold seas around Scotland .

Reptiles lay eggs and turtles lay theirs in a hole on a warm sandy beach. The mother then just goes away and leaves the eggs to develop on their own in the sand. When the baby turtles hatch out they have find their own way across the sand and into the sea. This is very dangerous and lots of them get eaten by sea birds. People also like to eat the eggs but this has meant that some turtles were in danger of dying out and becoming extinct. In some places now it is illegal to eat turtle eggs.

Turtles live in sea water which is very salty. They have special glands in their heads to get rid of all the salt. This means that if you eat a turtle it doesn't taste salty and if you are ever shipwrecked and running out of water then it is good to eat turtle meat since it will give you lots of fresh water and meat without adding too much salt.

Turtles eat jellyfish and they have special hooks in their throats to help them swallow these slimy animals. Yuk!

But do you know why don't turtles get stung when they eat jellyfish?

They may get stung a little, but they probably don't feel it too much. When they open their mouths wide to chomp down on something, their eyes close, protecting them from jellyfish tentacles that might sting their eyes. But the mouth and esophagus of a turtle is covered with a thick layer of tissue that protects them from being hurt by jellyfish, and their digestive system is adapted to handling that kind of food.

Sometimes though they see what they think is a lovely juicy jellyfish and they swallow it down only to find that it was actually a plastic carrier bag! Because of the hooks in their throats they can't get rid of the plastic and they die. So it is very important to make sure that any plastic bags you get are put carefully into the rubbish bins - or don't use plastic bags and buy your Mum a nice bright woven carrier bag!

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