Imagine a time 66 million years ago, when the sea was home to creatures so colossal that they could make a modern-day whale look like a minnow. At the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History, a glimpse into this ancient world is preserved through the skeleton of Archelon ischyros, the largest turtle to have ever existed.
This impressive relic showcases not just the grandeur of its size—approximately 15 feet from head to tail and weighing in at nearly 5,000 pounds—but also a unique battle-scarred history. The gear-shaped bones you see? They’re actually stomach plates that once shielded this titan from underwater predators. The missing right lower flipper and the peculiar stunted growth of its remaining flipper hint at a dramatic tale from its early days. Could it have been a desperate hatchling, narrowly escaping the clutches of a hungry bird, or perhaps a seasoned survivor who lost its flipper to a giant mosasaur or a fearsome Xiphactinus?
Despite its formidable size, Archelon faced challenges that ultimately led to its extinction. Increasing predation on its eggs and hatchlings, coupled with a cooling climate that other turtles managed to endure, spelled the end for this ancient giant.
Dive into the depths of prehistoric life and uncover the mysteries of a creature that once ruled the seas. What other secrets might this ancient titan still hold?
