Editing Turtle (section)

=== Migration ===
{{further|Sea turtle migration}}
[[File:Turtle golfina escobilla Oaxaca Mexico Claudio Giovenzana 2010.jpg|thumb|right|An olive ridley sea turtle nesting on Escobilla Beach, [[Oaxaca]], [[Mexico]]. Female sea turtles migrate long distances to nest on favored beaches.]]
Turtles are the only reptiles that migrate long distances, more specifically the marine species that can travel up to thousands of kilometers. Some non-marine turtles, such as the species of ''[[Geochelone]]'' (terrestrial), ''[[Chelydra]]'' (freshwater), and ''[[Malaclemys]]'' (estuarine), migrate seasonally over much shorter distances, up to around {{convert|27|km|mi|abbr=on}}, to lay eggs. Such short migrations are comparable to those of some lizards, snakes, and crocodilians.<ref name="Southwood Avens 2009">{{cite journal |last1=Southwood |first1=Amanda |last2=Avens |first2=Larisa |title=Physiological, Behavioral, and Ecological Aspects of Migration in Reptiles |journal=Journal of Comparative Physiology B |volume=180 |issue=1 |year=2009 |pages=1–23 |issn=0174-1578 |doi=10.1007/s00360-009-0415-8 |pmid=19847440 |s2cid=20245401 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/38028266 |access-date=June 6, 2021 |archive-date=July 24, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724105250/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/38028266_Physiological_behavioral_and_ecological_aspects_of_migration_in_reptiles |url-status=live }}</ref> Sea turtles nest in a specific area, such as a beach, leaving the eggs to hatch unattended. The young turtles leave that area, migrating long distances in the years or decades in which they grow to maturity, and then return seemingly to the same area every few years to mate and lay eggs, though the precision varies between species and populations. This "natal homing" has appeared remarkable to biologists, though there is now plentiful evidence for it, including from genetics.<ref name="Lohmann et al 2013">{{cite book |last1=Lohmann |first1=Kenneth J. |last2=Lohmann |first2=Catherine M. F. |last3=Brothers |first3=J. Roger |last4=Putman |first4=Nathan F. |chapter=Natal Homing and Imprinting in Sea Turtles |editor-last=Wyneken |editor-first=Jeanette |title=The Biology of Sea Turtles |publisher=CRC Press |year=2013 |isbn=978-1-4398-7308-3 |oclc=828509848 |pages=59–78}}</ref>

How sea turtles navigate to their breeding beaches remains unknown. One possibility is [[Imprinting (psychology)|imprinting]] as in [[salmon]], where the young learn the chemical signature, effectively the scent, of their home waters before leaving, and remember that when the time comes for them to return as adults. Another possible cue is the orientation of the [[Earth's magnetic field]] at the natal beach. There is experimental evidence that turtles have an effective magnetic sense, and that they use this in [[Animal navigation|navigation]]. Proof that homing occurs is derived from genetic analysis of populations of loggerheads, hawksbills, leatherbacks, and [[Olive ridley sea turtle|olive ridleys]] by nesting place. For each of these species, the populations in different places have their own [[mitochondrial DNA]] genetic signatures that persist over the years. This shows that the populations are distinct and that homing must be occurring reliably.<ref name="Lohmann et al 2013"/>