De Madras A Zaktnthos

Histoires De Carres > Printemps-Ete 2009

Almost life-size, a turtle illustrates the carre De Madras a Zakynthos. The name evokes the long journey of this strange animal, living in the archipelago of the Maldives and going all the back to the Greek Isles, its birthplace, to produce its offspring. Eggs are laid collectively - between 70 and 100 per turtle - buried in the warm sand and hatching out simultaneously two months later. Nevertheless, only 2% of the baby turtles survive following their mad race towards the sea. Protected since 1981, the various species can be differentiated by the scales on their shell. Their average size varies from 50 to 100cm, some able to live up to one hundred and fifty years.