Leatherback Sea Turtle vs Pale Clouded Yellow

Dermochelys coriacea compared with Colias hyale

Key Differences

• Leatherback Sea Turtle is Vulnerable while Pale Clouded Yellow is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Leatherback Sea Turtle	Pale Clouded Yellow
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Chordata (Chordates)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class	Reptilia (Reptiles)	Insecta (Insects)
Order	Testudines (Turtles & Tortoises)	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)
Family	Cheloniidae (Sea Turtles)	Pieridae
Genus	Chelonia (Green Sea Turtles)	Colias
Species	Dermochelys coriacea	Colias hyale

Evolutionary Relationship

Leatherback Sea Turtle and Pale Clouded Yellow share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

Leatherback Sea Turtle

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~35.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Pale Clouded Yellow

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Leatherback Sea Turtle	Pale Clouded Yellow
Diet	Carnivore	—
Average Lifespan	50 years	—
Average Length	2.0 m	—
Average Weight	500.0 kg	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Leatherback Sea Turtle

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 5 distinct biome types spanning the Australasia and Indomalayan and Neotropic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Costa Rica, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Trinidad and Tobago. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Pale Clouded Yellow

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Found across Europe (35 countries).

Leatherback Sea Turtle

The leatherback is the largest living turtle and the fourth-heaviest reptile. Unlike other turtles, it has a soft, leathery shell.

Pale Clouded Yellow

Pale Clouded Yellow (Colias hyale) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.