Rare Leatherback Sea Turtle Recorded in Saudi Red Sea Reserve

Saudi Arabia’s National Center for Wildlife has recorded a rare sighting of a leatherback sea turtle in the Red Sea, marking an unusual appearance of one of the world’s most threatened marine species in the region.

The turtle was documented around 30 kilometres off the coast of Al-Qunfudhah within the Blue Holes Protected Area, a recently established marine reserve. The centre described the leatherback as the largest turtle species on Earth, capable of reaching weights of up to 900 kilograms. Unlike other sea turtles, it has a distinctive black, leathery carapace with five longitudinal ridges rather than a hard shell and is known to dive to depths exceeding 1,000 metres.

Leatherback turtles are highly migratory, travelling vast distances in search of jellyfish, their primary food source. Conservation specialists believe the individual likely entered the Red Sea through the Bab Al-Mandeb Strait. The nearest known populations are found in the Indian Ocean, stretching from South Africa to Sri Lanka, approximately 7,000 to 8,000 kilometres away. The closest confirmed nesting sites are in India’s Andaman Islands, roughly 6,500 kilometres from the Red Sea, where no nesting activity has been recorded.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, the leatherback sea turtle is listed as Critically Endangered in the Indian Ocean. While comprehensive data on the species in the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf remain limited, isolated regional records include a juvenile sighting in Jordan in December 2025 and another off the coast of Djibouti in 2019.