noun, Cell Biology. 1. a network of tubular membranes within the cytoplasm of the cell, occurring either with a smooth surface (smooth endoplasmic reticulum) or studded with ribosomes (rough endoplasmic reticulum) involved in the transport of materials.
The most widely distributed of all sea turtles; found in the Gulf of Alaska and south of the Bering Sea in the northeastern Pacific to Chile in the southeastern Pacific. In the Barents Sea, Newfoundland and Labrador in the North Atlantic; around Argentina and South Africa in the South Atlantic.
Estimated numbers left in the wild: 60,000 (very approximate). Leatherback sea turtles are the largest turtles in the world, and are fourth in size among all current reptiles. Their body is protected only by leathery, oily skin, rather than a hard shell. The leatherbackâs front flippers can grow to a spread of 2.7 meters, and the animal itself measures from 1.8 to 2.2 meters long.