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You are here: Home / Animals / How Long Can a Sea Turtle Stay Underwater and Hold its Breath Without Coming to the Surface for Air?

How Long Can a Sea Turtle Stay Underwater and Hold its Breath Without Coming to the Surface for Air?

March 6, 2020 by Karen Hill

If a Sea Turtle has been swimming, it can stay underwater for a few minutes. If resting, it can stay underwater as long as two hours.

green sea turtle

Sea turtles are almost always under water, and have developed an anaerobic system of respiration.

Although all sea turtles breathe air, they may divert to anaerobic respiration for long periods if needed. A sea turtle can quickly refill its lungs with quick exhalation and rapid inhalation when surfacing.

Their lungs are large and can perform rapid exchange of oxygen which enable them to go for deep long dives.

Adult female sea turtles return to land to nest at night.

It is illegal to hunt most species of turtles in many countries as they are almost extinct.

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Filed Under: Animals

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

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