Warm Temperatures Turn Sea Turtles Female
Muse Science Magazine for Kids|September 2018

Your genes determined whether you were born with a male or female body. But that’s not true for all animals. In sea turtles, like many other reptiles, being male or female depends on temperature.

Elizabeth Preston
Warm Temperatures Turn Sea Turtles Female

Mother sea turtles bury their eggs in the sand. If the sand is warm, more of those eggs will develop into female turtles. If it’s cooler, more will be male when they hatch. Now global climate change is tipping the balance.

Researchers compared two groups of green sea turtles, an endangered species. One group hatches from nests near the northern end of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. That end is closer to the equator. The other turtles hatch near the southern end of the reef, where it’s cooler.

You can’t tell whether a baby sea turtle is male or female when it first hatches. So scientists studied older turtles feeding near the middle of the reef. They used the turtles’ DNA to figure out whether they came from the northern or southern group. With temperatures rising all over the world, turtles from both groups were mostly female. But in the warmer, northern group, the difference was extreme: less than 1 percent of young green sea turtles were male. Those numbers mean that this generation of sea turtles may one day produce fewer babies.

A New Largest Prime

THOUSANDS OF computers around the world are working together to hunt for prime numbers. At the end of 2017, a computer in Tennessee found a new one. This prime number is the longest ever discovered: it has more than 23 million digits.

この記事は Muse Science Magazine for Kids の September 2018 版に掲載されています。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。

この記事は Muse Science Magazine for Kids の September 2018 版に掲載されています。

7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。

MUSE SCIENCE MAGAZINE FOR KIDSのその他の記事すべて表示
A Mars Rock Found With Leopard Spots Could Be a Sign of Ancient Life
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

A Mars Rock Found With Leopard Spots Could Be a Sign of Ancient Life

IN JULY, NASA'S PERSEVERANCE ROVER CAME ACROSS A SPOTTED ROCK IN WHAT WAS ONCE A RIVERBED IN THE JEZERO CRATER ON MARS.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Para Athlete Uses Exoskeleton Suit to Carry the Olympic Torch
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Para Athlete Uses Exoskeleton Suit to Carry the Olympic Torch

In July, a 36-year-old French tennis para athlete, Kevin Piette, got a chance to participate in this summer’s Olympic torch relay without using a wheelchair.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Ancient Egyptians May Have Used a Water System to Lift Stones to Build Pyramid
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Ancient Egyptians May Have Used a Water System to Lift Stones to Build Pyramid

HOW ANCIENT EGYPTIANS BUILT THE MASSIVE PYRAMIDS IN EGYPT MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS AGO HAS LONG BEEN A TOPIC OF WONDER AND DEBATE.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Seals Can Make Big Dives Thanks to Their Big Hearts
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Seals Can Make Big Dives Thanks to Their Big Hearts

SEALS AND SEA LIONS, WHICH ARE SEMI-AQUATIC MAMMALS, CAN HOLD THEIR BREATHS UNDERWATER FOR ESPECIALLY LONG PERIODS OF TIME.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
THE BIG-CITY LIFE OF STEVEN J.BIKE SHOP RABBIT IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

THE BIG-CITY LIFE OF STEVEN J.BIKE SHOP RABBIT IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK

Bicycle Roots is a full-service bike shop. It's in the heart of Brooklyn, New York. Joe Lawler is the co-owner and service manager. Perhaps more important, he's \"dad\" to the shop's most popular employee. That's Steven J. Lawler.

time-read
1 min  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Wild Ones
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Wild Ones

WHAT FACTORS DRIVE PEOPLE TO BUY MONKEYS, TIGERS, AND OTHER WILD ANIMALS?

time-read
3 分  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
HOW TO CONQUER THE WORLD
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

HOW TO CONQUER THE WORLD

A brief history

time-read
4 分  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
What would happen if meteors hit Earth?
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

What would happen if meteors hit Earth?

You may have seen Ameteors fly into Earth's atmosphere, in the form of shooting stars.

time-read
2 分  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
WORKING WORMS
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

WORKING WORMS

DON'T JUST THROW THOSE TABLE SCRAPS AWAY! LET A BOX OF WORMS TURN THEM INTO SOMETHING USEFUL.

time-read
5 分  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind
Dog Rescue Saves Lives
Muse Science Magazine for Kids

Dog Rescue Saves Lives

THE ARGUMENT FOR ADOPTING A NO-KILL GOAL

time-read
4 分  |
Muse November-December 2024: Pets on the Mind