document_title: Green sea turtle

question_text: where do green sea turtles live in australia

text: Green sea turtle

text: Taxonomy[edit]

text: The green sea turtle is a member of the tribe Chelonini. A 1993 study clarified the status of genus Chelonia with respect to the other marine turtles. The carnivorous Eretmochelys (hawksbill), Caretta (loggerhead) and Lepidochelys (Ridley) were assigned to the tribe Carettini. Herbivorous Chelonia warranted their status as a genus, while Natator (flatback) was further removed from the other genera than previously believed.[9]

text: The species was originally described by Linnaeus in 1758 as Testudo mydas.[10] In 1868, Marie Firmin Bocourt named a particular species of sea turtle Chelonia agassizii.[11][12] This "species" was referred to as the "black sea turtle".[13] Later research determined Bocourt's "black sea turtle" was not genetically distinct from C. mydas, and thus taxonomically not a separate species.[14] These two "species" were then united as Chelonia mydas and populations were given subspecies status: C. mydas mydas referred to the originally described population, while C. mydas agassizi referred only to the Pacific population known as the Galápagos green turtle.[15][16] This subdivision was later determined to be invalid and all species members were then designated Chelonia mydas.[4] The oft-mentioned name C. agassizi remains an invalid junior synonym of C. mydas. Other authorities claim that the two populations are phenotypically distinct and treat the East Pacific form as a full species.[17]

text: The species' common name does not derive from any particular green external coloration of the turtle. Its name comes from the greenish color of the turtles' fat, which is only found in a layer between their inner organs and their shell.[18] As a species found worldwide, the green turtle has many local names. In the Hawaiian language it is called honu,[19][20] and it is locally known as a symbol of good luck and longevity.[21]

text:
Female returning to the sea after nesting in Redang Island, Malaysia

Immature Hawaiian C. mydas

Swimming in a Mexican coral reef

Heading for the ocean on a beach at the Pu'uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park

Green sea turtle near Marsa Alam, Egypt

Green sea turtle near Marsa Alam, Egypt

Green sea turtle

text: Description[edit]

text: Its appearance is that of a typical sea turtle. C. mydas has a dorsoventrally flattened body, a beaked head at the end of a short neck, and paddle-like arms well-adapted for swimming.[22] Adult green turtles grow to 1.5 metres (5 ft) long.[23] The average weight of mature individuals is 68–190 kg (150–419 lb) and the average carapace length is 78–112 cm (31–44 in).[24] Exceptional specimens can weigh 315 kg (694 lb) or even more, with the largest known C. mydas having weighed 395 kg (871 lb) and measured 153 cm (60 in) in carapace length.[25]

text: Anatomically, a few characteristics distinguish the green turtle from the other members of its family. Unlike the closely related hawksbill turtle, the green turtle's snout is very short and its beak is unhooked. The neck cannot be pulled into the shell.[26] The sheath of the turtle's upper jaw possesses a denticulated edge, while its lower jaw has stronger, serrated, more defined denticulation. The dorsal surface of the turtle's head has a single pair of prefrontal scales. Its carapace is composed of five central scutes flanked by four pairs of lateral scutes. Underneath, the green turtle has four pairs of inframarginal scutes covering the area between the turtle's plastron and its shell. Mature C. mydas front appendages have only a single claw (as opposed to the hawksbill's two), although a second claw is sometimes prominent in young specimens.[27]

text: The carapace of the turtle has various color patterns that change over time. Hatchlings of Chelonia mydas, like those of other marine turtles, have mostly black carapaces and light-colored plastrons. Carapaces of juveniles turn dark brown to olive, while those of mature adults are either entirely brown, spotted or marbled with variegated rays. Underneath, the turtle's plastron is hued yellow. C. mydas limbs are dark-colored and lined with yellow, and are usually marked with a large dark brown spot in the center of each appendage.[5][28]

text: Distribution[edit]

text: The range of the green sea turtle extends throughout tropical and subtropical oceans worldwide. The two major subpopulations are the Atlantic and the eastern Pacific subpopulations. Each population is genetically distinct, with its own set of nesting and feeding grounds within the population's known range.[5] One of the genetic differences between the two subpopulations is the type of mitochondrial DNA found in individual's cells. Individuals from rookeries in the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea have a similar type of mitochondrial DNA, and individuals from The Pacific and Atlantic Oceans have another type of Mitochondrial DNA.[29] Their native range includes tropical to subtropical waters along continental coasts and islands between 30°N and 30°S. Since green sea turtles are a migrating species, their global distribution spans into the open ocean. The differences in mitochondrial DNA more than likely stems from the populations being isolated from each other by the southern tips of both South America and Africa with no warm waters for the green sea turtles to migrate through. The green sea turtle is estimated to inhabit coastal areas of more than 140 countries, with nesting sites in over 80 countries worldwide throughout the year. In the United States Atlantic coast, green sea turtles can be found from Texas and north to Massachusetts. In the United States Pacific coast, they have been found from southern California north to the southernmost tip of Alaska. The largest populations of green sea turtles within the United States coastline are in the Hawaiian Islands and Florida. Globally, the largest populations of sea turtles are in the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Caribbean islands.[30]

text: Atlantic subpopulation[edit]

text: The green sea turtle can generally be found throughout the Atlantic Ocean. Although the species is most abundant in tropical climates, individuals have been spotted as far north as Canada in the western Atlantic, and the British Isles in the east. The subpopulation's southern range is known until past the southern tip of Africa in the east and Argentina in the western Atlantic. The major nesting sites can be found on various islands in the Caribbean, along the eastern shores of the continental United States, the eastern coast of the South American continent and most notably, on isolated North Atlantic islands.

text: In the Caribbean, major nesting sites have been identified on Aves Island, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, and Costa Rica. In recent years there are signs of increased nesting in the Cayman Islands.[31] One of the region's most important nesting grounds is in Tortuguero in Costa Rica.[32] In fact, the majority of the Caribbean region's C. mydas population hails from a few beaches in Tortuguero.[33] Within United States waters, minor nesting sites have been noted in the states of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and all along the east coast of Florida. Hutchinson Island in particular is a major nesting area in Florida waters. Notable locations in South America include secluded beaches in Suriname and French Guiana.[34] In the Southern Atlantic Ocean, the most notable nesting grounds for Chelonia mydas are found on the island of Ascension,[22] hosts 6,000–13,000 turtle nests.[35][36][37]

text: In contrast with the sporadic distribution of nesting sites, feeding grounds are much more widely distributed throughout the region. Important feeding grounds in Florida include Indian River Lagoon, the Florida Keys, Florida Bay, Homosassa, Crystal River, and Cedar Key.[22][38]

text: Indo-Pacific subpopulation[edit]

text: In the Pacific, its range reaches as far north as the southern coast of Alaska and as far south as Chile in the east. The turtle's distribution in the western Pacific reaches north to Japan and southern parts of Russia's Pacific coast, and as far south as the northern tip of New Zealand and a few islands south of Tasmania. The turtles can be found throughout the Indian Ocean.[39]

text: Significant nesting grounds are scattered throughout the entire Pacific region, including Mexico, the Hawaiian Islands, the South Pacific, the northern coast of Australia, and Southeast Asia. Major Indian Ocean nesting colonies include India, Pakistan, and other coastal countries. The east coast of the African continent hosts a few nesting grounds, including islands in the waters around Madagascar.[39]

text: Nesting grounds are found all along the Mexican coast. These turtles feed in seagrass pastures in the Gulf of California.[40] Green turtles belonging to the distinct Hawaiian subpopulation nest at the protected French Frigate Shoals some 800 kilometers (500 mi) west of the Hawaiian Islands.[20] In the Philippines, green turtles nest in the Turtle Islands along with closely related hawksbill turtles.[41] Indonesia has a few nesting beaches, one in the Meru Betiri National Reserve in East Java.[42] The Coral Sea has nesting areas of world significance.[43] The Great Barrier Reef has two genetically distinct populations; one north and one south. Within the reef, twenty separate locations consisting of small islands and cays were identified as nesting sites for either population of C. mydas. Of these, the most important is on Raine Island.[44][45] Major nesting sites are common on either side of the Arabian Sea, both in Ash Sharqiyah, Oman, and along the coast of Karachi, Pakistan. Some specific beaches there, such as Hawke's Bay and Sandspit, are common to both C. mydas and L. olivacea subpopulation. Sandy beaches along Sindh and Balochistan are nesting sites. Some 25 kilometers (16 mi) off the Pakistani coast, Astola island is another nesting beach.[7][46][47]

text: On 30 December 2007, fishermen using a hulbot-hulbot (a type of fishnet) accidentally caught an 80 kg (180 lb), 93 cm (37 in) long and 82 cm (32 in) wide turtle off Barangay Bolong, Zamboanga City, Philippines. December is breeding season near the Bolong beach.[48]

text: Habitat[edit]

text: Green sea turtles move across three habitat types, depending on their life stage. They lay eggs on beaches. Mature turtles spend most of their time in shallow, coastal waters with lush seagrass beds. Adults frequent inshore bays, lagoons and shoals with lush seagrass meadows. Entire generations often migrate between one pair of feeding and nesting areas.[22] Green sea turtles, Chelonia mydas, are classified as an aquatic species and are distributed around the globe in warm tropical to subtropical waters. The environmental parameter that limits the distribution of the turtles is ocean temperatures below 7 to 10 degrees Celsius.[49] Within their geographical range, the green sea turtles generally stay near continental and island coastlines. Near the coastlines, the green sea turtles live within shallow bays and protected shores. In these protected shores and bays, the green sea turtle habitats include coral reefs, salt marshes, and nearshore seagrass beds. The coral reefs provide red, brown, and green algae for their diet and gives protection from predators and rough storms within the ocean. The salt marshes and seagrass beds contain seaweed and grass vegetation, allowing ample habitat for the sea turtles.[30]

text: Turtles spend most of their first five years in convergence zones within the bare open ocean that surround them.[7][50] These young turtles are rarely seen as they swim in deep, pelagic waters.[51][52] Green sea turtles typically swim at 2.5–3 km/h (1.6–1.9 mph).[53]

text: Ecology and behavior[edit]

text: As one of the first sea turtle species studied, much of what is known of sea turtle ecology comes from studies of green turtles. The ecology of C. mydas changes drastically with each stage of its life history. Newly emerged hatchlings are carnivorous, pelagic organisms, part of the open ocean mininekton. In contrast, immature juveniles and adults are commonly found in seagrass meadows closer inshore as herbivorous grazers.

text: Diet[edit]

text: The diet of green turtles changes with age.[54] Juveniles are carnivorous, but as they mature they become omnivorous.[55] The young eat fish eggs, molluscs, jellyfish, small invertebrates, worms, sponges, algae, and crustaceans.[56][30] Green sea turtles have a relatively slow growth rate because of the low nutritional value of their diet. Body fat turns green because of the consumed vegetation.[55] This diet shift has an effect on the green turtle's skull morphology.[57] Their serrated jaw helps them chew algae and sea grasses.[58] Most adult sea turtles are strictly herbivorous.[55]

text: Predators and parasites[edit]

text: Only human beings and the larger sharks feed on C. mydas adults. Specifically, tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) hunt adults in Hawaiian waters.[59] Juveniles and new hatchlings have significantly more predators, including crabs, small marine mammals and shorebirds.[5] Additionally, their eggs are vulnerable to predation by scavengers like red foxes and golden jackals.[60]

text: Green sea turtles have a variety of parasites including barnacles, leeches, protozoans, cestodes, and nematodes. Barnacles attach to the carapace, and leeches to the flippers and skin of the turtles, causing damage to the soft tissues and leading to blood loss. Protozoans, cestodes and nematodes lead to many turtle deaths because of the infections in the liver and intestinal tract they cause. The greatest disease threat to the turtle population is fibropapilloma, which produces lethal tumor growth on scales, lungs, stomach, and kidneys. Fibropapilloma is caused by a herpesvirus that is transmitted by leeches such as Ozobranchus branchiatus, a species of leech which feeds almost entirely on green sea turtles.[49][61]

text: Life cycle[edit]

text: Green sea turtles migrate long distances between feeding sites and nesting sites; some swim more than 2,600 kilometres (1,600 mi) to reach their spawning grounds. Beaches in Southeast Asia, India, islands in the western Pacific, and Central America are where Green sea turtles breed.[6] Mature turtles often return to the exact beach from which they hatched. Females usually mate every two to four years. Males, on the other hand, visit the breeding areas every year, attempting to mate.[62] Mating seasons vary between populations. For most C. mydas in the Caribbean, mating season is from June to September.[22] The French Guiana nesting subpopulation nests from March to June.[34] In the tropics, green turtles nest throughout the year, although some subpopulations prefer particular times of the year. In Pakistan, Indian Ocean turtles nest year-round, but prefer the months of July to December.[46]

text: Sea turtles return to the beaches on which they were born to lay their own eggs. The reason for returning to native beaches may be that it guarantees the turtles an environment that has the necessary components for their nesting to be successful. These include a sandy beach, easy access for the hatchlings to get to the ocean, the right incubation temperatures, and low probability of predators that may feed on their eggs. Over time these turtles have evolved these tendencies to return to an area that has provided reproductive success for many generations. Their ability to return to their birthplace is known as natal homing.[63] The males also return to their birthplaces in order to mate. These males that return to their homes know they will be able to find mates because the females born there also return to breed. By doing this, the green sea turtles are able to improve their reproductive success and is why they are willing to expend the energy to travel thousands of miles across the ocean in order to reproduce.

text: Mating behaviour is similar to other marine turtles. Female turtles control the process. A few populations practice polyandry, although this does not seem to benefit hatchlings.[64] After mating in the water, the female moves above the beach's high tide line, where she digs a hole 11-22 inches in depth with her hind flippers and deposits her eggs. The hole is then covered up again.[65] Clutch size ranges between 85 and 200, depending on the age of the female. This process takes about an hour to an hour and a half. After the nest is completely covered, she returns to the sea. The female will do this 3 to 5 times in one season.[6]

text: The eggs are round and white, and about 45 mm in diameter. The hatchlings remain buried for days until they all emerge together at night.[65] The temperature of the nest determines the sex of the turtles before they hatch. At around 50 to 70 days,[66] the eggs hatch during the night, and the hatchlings instinctively head directly into the water. This is the most dangerous time in a turtle's life. As they walk, predators, such as gulls and crabs, feed on them. A significant percentage never make it to the ocean. Little is known of the initial life history of newly hatched sea turtles.[22] Juveniles spend three to five years in the open ocean before they settle as still-immature juveniles into their permanent shallow-water lifestyle.[51][52] It is speculated that they take twenty to fifty years to reach sexual maturity. Individuals live up to eighty years in the wild.[5] It is estimated that only 1% of hatchlings reach sexual maturity.[67]

text: Each year on Ascension Island in the South Atlantic, C. mydas females create 6,000 to 25,000 nests. They are among the largest green turtles in the world; many are more than a metre in length and weigh up to 300 kilograms (660 lb).[68]

text: Breathing and sleep[edit]

text: Sea turtles spend almost all their lives submerged, but must breathe air for the oxygen needed to meet the demands of vigorous activity. With a single explosive exhalation and rapid inhalation, sea turtles can quickly replace the air in their lungs. The lungs permit a rapid exchange of oxygen and prevent gases from being trapped during deep dives. Sea turtle blood can deliver oxygen efficiently to body tissues even at the pressures encountered during diving. During routine activity, green and loggerhead turtles dive for about four to five minutes, and surface to breathe for one to three seconds.

text: Turtles can rest or sleep underwater for several hours at a time, but submergence time is much shorter while diving for food or to escape predators. Breath-holding ability is affected by activity and stress, which is why turtles quickly drown in shrimp trawlers and other fishing gear.[27] During the night while sleeping and to protect themselves from potential predators, the adults wedge themselves under rocks below the surface and under ledges in reefs and coastal rocks. Many green sea turtles have been observed in returning to the same sleeping location night after night.[30]

text: Physiology and sensory modalities[edit]

text: Green sea turtles tend to have good vision, well adapted to a life at sea. The turtles can see many colors, but are most sensitive to light from violet to yellow or wavelengths of 400 to 600 nanometers. They do not see many colors in the orange to red portion of the light spectrum. On land, however, the sea turtles are nearsighted because the lenses in the eyes are spherical and adjusted to refraction underwater.[30] Sea turtles have no external ear and only one ear bone, called the columella. With one ear bone, the turtles can only hear low frequency sounds, from 200 to 700 Hz. Sounds can also be detected through vibrations of the head, backbone, and shell. The nose of the turtle has two external openings and connects to the roof of the mouth through internal openings. The lower surface of the nasal passage has two sets of sensory cells called the Jacobson’s organ. The turtle can use this organ to smell by pumping water in and out of its nose.[49]

text: Since green sea turtles migrate long distances during breeding seasons, they have special adaptive systems in order to navigate. In the open ocean, the turtles navigate using wave directions, sun light, and temperatures. The sea turtles also contain an internal magnetic compass. They can detect magnetic information by using magnetic forces acting on the magnetic crystals in their brains. Through these crystals, they can sense the intensity Earth’s magnetic field and are able to make their way back to their nesting grounds or preferred feeding grounds.[49]

text: Natal homing is an animal's ability to return to its birthplace in order to reproduce. Natal homing is found in all species of sea turtles and in other animals such as salmon. How these turtles are able to return to their birthplace is an interesting phenomenon. Many researchers believe that sea turtle use a process called imprinting, which is a special type of learning that occurs when turtles first hatch that allows them to recognize their native beach. There are two types of imprinting that are thought to be the reason turtles can find these beaches.The first is the chemical imprinting hypothesis. This hypothesis states that much like salmon, sea turtles are able to use olfactory cues and senses to smell their way home. However, a problem with this hypothesis is that some turtles travel thousands of miles to return to their native beaches, and the scents from that area aren’t likely to travel and be distinguishable from that distance. The second hypothesis is the geomagnetic hypothesis. This hypothesis states that as it hatches, a young turtle will imprint on the magnetic field of the beach they are born on. This hypothesis strongly correlates to the method which sea turtles use to navigate the earth.[63]

text: In order to tolerate the constant heat loss in the water, sea turtles have the ability to shunt blood away from tissues that are tolerant of low oxygen levels toward the heart, brain, and central nervous system. Other mechanisms include basking on warm beaches and producing heat through their activity and movements of their muscles. In the winter months, turtles living at higher latitudes can hibernate for a short period in the mud.[69]

text: Unique characteristics and features[edit]

text: The green sea turtles exhibit sex differences by their development and appearance. As adult turtles, males are easily distinguishable from the females by having a longer tail (visibly extending past the shell) and longer claws on the front flippers. The hatching time and sex of the turtles are determined by the incubation temperature of the nest. Hatchings occur more quickly in nests that are warmer than nests that are in cooler conditions. Warm nesting sites above 30 degrees Celsius favor the development of females, whereas nesting sites below 30 degrees Celsius produce males. The position of the egg in the nest also affects sex-determination. Eggs in the center tend to hatch as females due to the warmer conditions within the nest.[30]

text: Green sea turtles play an essential role within the ecosystem in which they live. In the seagrass beds, the turtles feed on the seagrass by trimming only the top and leaving the roots of the plant. Through their feeding technique, the turtles help to improve the health and growth of the seagrass beds. The healthy seagrass beds that the turtles provide give habitat and feeding grounds for many species of fish and crustaceans. On the nesting beaches, the green sea turtles provide key nutrients for the ecosystem through their hatched egg shells. In their coral reef habitat, the green sea turtles have a symbiotic interaction with reef fish, including the yellow tang. The yellow tang fish swims along with the turtle and feeds on the algae, barnacles, and parasites on its shell and flippers. This species interaction provides food for the yellow tang and provides a necessary cleaning and smoothing of the turtle’s shell. This cleaning helps the turtle swim by reducing the amount of drag and improves their health.[49]

text: Importance to humans[edit]

text: Historically, the turtles' skin was tanned and used to make handbags, especially in Hawaii.[20] Ancient Chinese considered the flesh of sea turtles a culinary delicacy, including and especially C. mydas.[70] Particularly for this species, the turtle's fat, cartilage, and flesh, known as calipee, are sought as ingredients for making turtle soup, a popular 19th century American dish.[18]

text: In Java, Indonesia, sea turtle eggs were a popular delicacy. However, the turtle's flesh is regarded as ḥarām or "unclean" under Islamic law (Islam is Java's primary religion). In Bali, turtle meat was a prominent feature at ceremonial and religious feasts. Turtles were harvested in the remotest parts of the Indonesian archipelago.[71] Bali has been importing sea turtles since the 1950s, as its own turtle supplies became depleted.[72] The mostly Hindu Balinese do not eat the eggs, but sell them instead to local Muslims.

text: Commercial farms, such as the Cayman Turtle Farm in the West Indies, once bred them for commercial sale of turtle meat, turtle oil (rendered from the fat), turtle shell, and turtle leather made from the skin. The farm's initial stock was in large part from "doomed" eggs removed from nests threatened by erosion, flooding, or in chemically hostile soil.[73] The farms held as many as 100,000 turtles at any one time. When the international markets were closed by regulations that did not allow even farm-bred turtle products to be exported internationally, the surviving farm became primarily a tourist attraction, supporting 11,000 turtles.[74] Initially started as Mariculture Ltd., then Cayman Turtle Farm Ltd and subsequently branded Boatswain's Beach, in 2010 the farm's brandname was changed to Cayman Turtle Farm: Island Wildlife Encounter.[75]

text: Sea turtles are integral to the history and culture of the Cayman Islands. When the islands were first discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1503, he named them "Las Tortugas" because of the abundance of sea turtles in the waters around the islands.[76] Many of the earliest visitors came to the Cayman Islands to capture the turtles as a source of fresh meat during long voyages. The Green Turtle is a national symbol displayed as part of the Coat of Arms of the Cayman Islands, which also forms part of the national flag of the Cayman Islands. The country's currency uses a turtle as the watermark in its banknotes.[77] A stylised sea turtle nicknamed "Sir Turtle" is the mascot of the national airline Cayman Airways[78] and is part of the livery of its aircraft.

text: A ki' pohaku (petroglyph) of a turtle (or honu) can be found on The Big Island of Hawaii in the Pu'u Loa lava fields. The green sea turtle (called Honu) has always held a special meaning for Hawaiians and this petroglyph shows its importance dating to possibly when the islands first became populated. The turtle symbolizes a navigator that can find his way home time after time. This symbol mirrors the real life of the green Hawaiian turtle as it will swim hundreds of miles to lay its eggs at its own place of birth. Though there are other myths as well, some Hawaiian legends say the honu were the first to guide the Polynesians to the Hawaiian Islands. Hawaiians revere the turtle and the legend of Kailua, a turtle who could take the form of a girl at will. In human form, she looked after the children playing on Punalu'u beach.[79]

text: Conservation[edit]

text: In recent decades, sea turtles have moved from unrestricted exploitation to global protection, with individual countries providing additional protection, although serious threats remain unabated.

text: Threats[edit]

text: Human action presents both intentional and unintentional threats to the species' survival. Intentional threats include continued hunting, poaching and egg harvesting. More dangerous are unintentional threats, including boat strikes, fishermen's nets that lack turtle excluder devices, pollution and habitat destruction. Chemical pollution may create tumors;[80] effluent from harbors near nesting sites may create disturbances; and light pollution may disorient hatchlings. Habitat loss usually occurs due to human development of nesting areas. Beach-front construction, land "reclamation" and increased tourism are examples of such development.[5][7] An infectious tumor-causing disease, fibropapillomatosis, is also a problem in some populations. The disease kills a sizeable fraction of those it infects, though some individuals seem to resist the disease.[20][81][82] In addition, at least in the Southwestern Atlantic (Río de la Plata, Uruguay), exotic invasive species such as the rapa whelk Rapana venosa, were reported massively bio-fouling immature green turtles, reducing buoyancy, increasing drag, and causing severe injuries to the carapace.[83] Because of these threats, many populations are in a vulnerable state.

text: Pacific green turtles' foraging habitats are poorly understood and mostly unknown.[84] These foraging grounds are most likely along the coast of Baja California, Mexico and southern California,[85] in which these turtles have a high risk of incidental capture by coastal fisheries. The main mortality factor for these turtles is the shrimp trawlers in Mexico, in which many of these turtles go undocumented.[85] The only foraging area that has been identified is the San Diego Bay, but it is heavily polluted with metals and PCBs.[85] These contaminants have a negative effect on the ocean environment, and have been shown to cause lesions and sometimes mortality.[85] Green turtles also are threatened by entanglement and ingestion of plastic.[85] In San Diego Bay, an adult green turtle was found dead with monofilament netting tightly packed in its esophagus.[85] In addition there are indications that global climate change is affecting the ability of Green Turtle populations in Australia to produce males due to their temperature-dependent sex determination and the rising temperatures in the northern Great Barrier Reef region.[86]

text: Green sea turtles are the most commonly traded species along Java's south coast and are sold in the form of whole, stuffed animals or turtle oil, locally known as "minyak bulus"[87]

text: Global initiatives[edit]

text: The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has repeatedly listed green sea turtles in its Red List under differing criteria. In 1982, they officially classified it as an endangered species.[88] The 1986,[89] 1988,[90] 1990,[91] 1994,[92] and the landmark 1996 edition of the IUCN Red List, retained the listing.[93]

text: In 2001, Nicholas Mrosovsky filed a delisting petition, claiming some green turtle populations were large, stable and in some cases, increasing. At the time, the species was listed under the strict EN A1abd criteria. The IUCN Standards and Petitions Subcommittee ruled that visual counts of nesting females could not be considered "direct observation" and thus downgraded the species' status to EN A1bd—retaining the turtle's endangered status.[94]

text: In 2004, the IUCN reclassified C. mydas as endangered under the EN A2bd criteria, which essentially states the wild populations face a high risk of extinction because of several factors. These factors include a probable population reduction of more than 50% over the past decade as estimated from abundance indices and by projecting exploitation levels.[95]

text: On 3 May 2007, C. mydas was listed on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) as a member of the family Cheloniidae.[96] The species was originally listed on Appendix II in 1975. The entire family was moved to Appendix I in 1977, with the exception of the Australian population of C. mydas. In 1981, the Australian population joined the rest. It is therefore illegal to import, export, kill, capture or harass green turtles.[97]

text: The Mediterranean population is listed as critically endangered.[5][18] The eastern Pacific, Hawaiian and Southern California subpopulations are designated threatened. Specific Mexican subpopulations are listed as endangered. The Florida population is listed as endangered. The World Wide Fund for Nature has labeled populations in Pakistan as "rare and declining".[47]

text: In the State of Hawaii, specifically on the Island of Hawaii (Hawaii County), state representative Faye Hanohano, a Native Hawaiian rights activist, pressed for a measure to delist C. mydas from protected status so that Native Hawaiians could legally harvest the turtles and possibly their eggs as well. The bill, HCR14, was largely overlooked by the media since at that point it was only a local issue. While the bill was passed in the House, the Senate's Committee on Energy and Environment refused to hear it, which meant that the bill did not go on to be heard by the Senate.[98]

text: Country-specific initiatives[edit]

text: In addition to management by global entities such as the IUCN and CITES, specific countries around the world have undertaken conservation efforts. Bali has traditional uses that were considered sustainable, but have been questioned considering greater demand from the larger and wealthier human population. The harvest was the most intensive in the world.[71] In 1999, Indonesia restricted turtle trade and consumption because of the decreasing population and threat of a tourist boycott. It rejected a request made by Bali Governor I Made Mangku Pastika in November 2009 to set a quota of 1,000 turtles to be killed in Hindu religious ceremonies. While conservationists respect the need for turtles in rituals, they wanted a smaller quota.[99]

text: Ecotourism is one initiative in Sabah, Malaysia. The island of Pulau Selingan is home to a turtle hatchery. Staff people place some of the eggs laid each night in a hatchery to protect them from predators. Incubation takes around sixty days. When the eggs hatch, tourists assist in the release of the baby turtles into the sea.[100]

text: All populations are listed as "Threatened".[101][102] The Hawaiian subpopulation has made a remarkable comeback and is now one focus of ecotourism and has become something of a state mascot. Students of Hawaii Preparatory Academy on the Big Island have tagged thousands of specimens since the early 1990s.[20]

text: In the United Kingdom the species is protected by a Biodiversity Action Plan, due to excess harvesting and marine pollution.[103] The Pakistani-branch of the World Wide Fund for Nature has been initiating projects for secure turtle hatching since the 1980s. However, the population has continued to decline.[7]

text: In the Atlantic, conservation initiatives have centered around Caribbean nesting sites. The Tortuguero nesting beaches in Costa Rica have been the subject of egg-collection limits since the 1950s. The Tortuguero National Park was formally established in 1976, in part, to protect that region's nesting grounds.[32] On Ascension Island, which contains some of the most important nesting beaches, an active conservation program has been implemented.[104] Karumbé has been monitoring foraging and developmental areas of juvenile green turtles in Uruguay since 1999.[105]

text: Cayman Turtle Farm located in Grand Cayman in the northwest Caribbean Sea is the first farm to have achieved the second generation of Green Sea turtles bred, laid, hatched, and raised in captivity.[106] Since its beginning in 1968, the farm has released over 31,000 turtles into the wild,[76] and each year more captive-bred turtles are released into the Caribbean Sea from beaches around the island of Grand Cayman.[107] Captive-bred turtles released from the farm as hatchlings or yearlings with "living tags," have now begun to return to nest on Grand Cayman as adults.[108][109] On February 19, 2012 the farm released the first 2nd-generation captive-bred Green Sea turtle equipped with a Position Tracking Transponder – PTT (also known as a satellite tag).[110] In addition, the farm provides turtle meat products to the local population for whom turtle has been part of the traditional cuisine for centuries. In so doing, the farm curtails the incentive to take turtles from the wild,[111] which over the years in addition to the Cayman Turtle Farm's release of captive-bred turtles has enabled an increase in the number of turtles sighted in the waters around the island of Grand Cayman and nesting on its beaches.[112]

text: In the Pacific, green sea turtles nest on the motu (islets) in the Funafuti Conservation Area, a marine conservation area covering 33 square kilometers (12.74 square miles) of reef, lagoon and motu on the western side of Funafuti atoll in Tuvalu.[113]

text: Genetics[edit]

text: The genome of Chelonia mydas was sequenced in 2013 to examine the development and evolution of the turtle body plan.[114]


document_title: Climate of Tasmania

question_text: when does it snow in tasmania what months

root

text: Climate of Tasmania

text: Climate data[edit]

text:
[hide]Climate data for Tasmania

Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year

Record high °C (°F)
42.2
(108)
40.1
(104.2)
38.0
(100.4)
32.0
(89.6)
28.8
(83.8)
22.0
(71.6)
24.0
(75.2)
25.0
(77)
31.1
(88)
34.6
(94.3)
38.5
(101.3)
39.8
(103.6)
42.2
(108)

Record low °C (°F)
−4.0
(24.8)
−4.0
(24.8)
−6.9
(19.6)
−7.7
(18.1)
−10.5
(13.1)
−13.0
(8.6)
−12.5
(9.5)
−11.1
(12)
−10.7
(12.7)
−8.5
(16.7)
−6.8
(19.8)
−5.0
(23)
−13.0
(8.6)

Source: Bureau of Meteorology[3]

tag: table

text: Rainfall[edit]

text: In southern Australia (which includes Tasmania), most rain falls during the winter months and is normally associated with frontal systems. Elevation also has an important influence on rainfall, with the mountain areas of western Tasmania receiving higher rainfall totals.[4]

tag: p

text: The wettest part of the State is the west coast, where there is a strong winter maximum in rainfall: January and February typically averages only one-third the rainfall of July and August, though even in the driest months rain usually falls on every second day and the number of rainy days per year is much greater than on any part of the Australian mainland. Further east in the Lake Country, annual rainfall declines to around 900 millimetres (35 in), whilst in the Midlands (i.e. further east again), annual rainfall is as low as 450 millimetres (18 in) at Ross and generally below 600 millimetres (24 in). The eastern part of Tasmania has rainfall more evenly distributed throughout the year than in the west, and most months receive very similar averages.

text: The densely populated northern coast is much drier than the western side, with annual rainfall ranging from 666 millimetres (26.2 in) in Launceston to 955 millimetres (37.6 in) in Burnie in the north west and 993 millimetres (39.1 in) in Scottsdale located further to the east.[5][6] Most rain falls in winter, and in summer the average can be as low as 31 millimetres (1.2 in) per month in Launceston. The east coast is wetter than the Midlands, with an average annual rainfall ranging from 775 millimetres (30.5 in) in St. Helens to around 640 millimetres (25 in) in Swansea.[7][8] Here the rainfall is evenly distributed over the year but can be very erratic as heavy rainfalls from the warm Tasman Sea are quite frequent. Whereas a three-day fall of 125 millimetres (4.9 in) occurs only once every fifty years on the north coast, it occurs on average once every four or five years around Swansea and Bicheno. On 7–8 June 1954, there were many falls as large as 230 millimetres (9.1 in) in two days in that area. The east coast is sometimes called the "sun coast" because of its sunny climate.[9]

text: In the south-east, including Hobart, Spring receives slightly more rainfall than Winter, and Spring also has slightly more rainy days than Winter.

text: Summer[edit]

text: Summer is from December to February when the average maximum sea temperature is 21 °C (70 °F). On land, maximum temperatures average 20 °C (68 °F) to 24 °C (75 °F) along the coast and in the lowlands, such as around Launceston. The hottest areas of the state are in the valleys west of Hobart, where summer temperatures regularly rise above 25 °C (77 °F). During heatwaves, temperatures in this region can rise above 40 °C (104 °F). The Tasmanian highlands are much cooler, with Liawenee, located on the Central Plateau, one of the coldest places in Australia with temperatures in February ranging between 4 °C (39 °F) to 17 °C (63 °F).[10]

text: Winter[edit]

text: The winter months are June, July, and August, and are generally the wettest and coolest months in the state, with most elevated areas receiving considerable snowfall. Winter maximums range from 12 °C (54 °F) along the coast, to 3 °C (37 °F) on the Central Plateau, thanks to frequent cold fronts from the Southern Ocean. Minimum temperatures however are warmer than mainland Australia, most of coastal Tasmania rarely drops below freezing and daily temperature variation is often very narrow. Elevated, inland areas can however drop below −10 °C (14 °F) during clear nights between fronts, while during snowy weather the maximum temperature may not rise above 0 °C (32 °F).[11]

text: Spring[edit]

text: The Spring months are September, October, and November. It is a season of frequent changes, as winter weather patterns begin to take the shape of summer patterns, although snowfall is still common in mountainous areas until October. Spring is the windiest time of the year with afternoon sea breezes starting to take effect on the coast.

text: Autumn[edit]

text: Autumn is from March to May and is a season of transition, as summer weather patterns gradually take on the shape of winter patterns.

text: Locations[edit]

text: Hobart[edit]

text: Hobart has a mild temperate oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification), with four distinct seasons. The highest temperature recorded was 41.8°C on 4 January 2013 and the lowest was −2.8°C on 25 June 1972. Compared to other major Australia cities Hobart has the second least daily average hours of sunshine, with 5.9 hours. (Melbourne has the least) [12] The city rarely receives snow in winter; however, the adjacent Mount Wellington is often seen with a covering in winter, and it has received unseasonal snowfalls in all seasons, including summer. Though snow is unusual in general at sea level in Australia, Hobart has most probably had the most sea level snowfalls out of any State Capital.

text:
[hide]

v
t
e

Climate data for Ellerslie Road (Battery Point)

Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year

Record high °C (°F)
41.8
(107.2)
40.1
(104.2)
37.3
(99.1)
31.0
(87.8)
25.7
(78.3)
20.6
(69.1)
22.1
(71.8)
24.5
(76.1)
31.0
(87.8)
34.6
(94.3)
36.8
(98.2)
40.6
(105.1)
41.8
(107.2)

Average high °C (°F)
22.2
(72)
22.1
(71.8)
20.3
(68.5)
17.8
(64)
15.1
(59.2)
12.4
(54.3)
12.3
(54.1)
13.7
(56.7)
15.4
(59.7)
17.3
(63.1)
18.9
(66)
20.4
(68.7)
17.3
(63.1)

Daily mean °C (°F)
17.4
(63.3)
17.4
(63.3)
15.9
(60.6)
13.6
(56.5)
11.4
(52.5)
8.9
(48)
8.6
(47.5)
9.7
(49.5)
11.2
(52.2)
12.8
(55)
14.4
(57.9)
15.9
(60.6)
13.1
(55.6)

Average low °C (°F)
12.6
(54.7)
12.6
(54.7)
11.4
(52.5)
9.4
(48.9)
7.6
(45.7)
5.3
(41.5)
4.9
(40.8)
5.7
(42.3)
6.9
(44.4)
8.3
(46.9)
9.9
(49.8)
11.3
(52.3)
8.8
(47.8)

Record low °C (°F)
3.3
(37.9)
3.4
(38.1)
1.8
(35.2)
0.7
(33.3)
−1.6
(29.1)
−2.8
(27)
−2.8
(27)
−1.8
(28.8)
−0.8
(30.6)
0.0
(32)
0.3
(32.5)
3.3
(37.9)
−2.8
(27)

Average rainfall mm (inches)
44.4
(1.748)
36.3
(1.429)
39.3
(1.547)
43.4
(1.709)
36.0
(1.417)
42.9
(1.689)
47.3
(1.862)
60.5
(2.382)
58.7
(2.311)
56.1
(2.209)
47.7
(1.878)
56.2
(2.213)
568.7
(22.39)

Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm)
10.1
8.6
11.0
11.4
11.5
11.9
13.8
14.1
15.5
15.1
12.6
12.1
147.7

Average afternoon relative humidity (%)
51
51
54
57
60
64
62
56
54
52
53
51
55.4

Mean monthly sunshine hours
257.3
225.9
204.0
177.0
148.8
132.0
151.9
179.8
195.0
232.5
234.0
248.0
2,386.2

Source #1: Bureau of Meteorology (1981–2010 averages;[13] extremes 1882–present)[14]

Source #2: Bureau of Meteorology, Hobart Airport (sunshine hours)[15]

text: Launceston[edit]

text: Launceston has a mild, temperate climate,[16] with four distinct seasons. The city is located in the Tamar Valley and is surrounded by many large hills and mountains. With this type of topography, Launceston's weather patterns can change in a short period of time.[17]

text:
[hide]Climate data for Launceston (Ti Tree Bend)

Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year

Record high °C (°F)
39.0
(102.2)
34.4
(93.9)
33.0
(91.4)
27.7
(81.9)
22.0
(71.6)
18.4
(65.1)
18.4
(65.1)
20.3
(68.5)
24.8
(76.6)
28.7
(83.7)
30.7
(87.3)
33.8
(92.8)
39.0
(102.2)

Average high °C (°F)
24.2
(75.6)
24.5
(76.1)
22.5
(72.5)
18.8
(65.8)
15.8
(60.4)
13.1
(55.6)
12.6
(54.7)
13.7
(56.7)
15.5
(59.9)
18.0
(64.4)
20.4
(68.7)
22.4
(72.3)
18.5
(65.3)

Daily mean °C (°F)
18.2
(64.8)
18.3
(64.9)
16.3
(61.3)
13.2
(55.8)
10.4
(50.7)
8.0
(46.4)
7.4
(45.3)
8.7
(47.7)
10.3
(50.5)
12.3
(54.1)
14.7
(58.5)
16.5
(61.7)
12.9
(55.2)

Average low °C (°F)
12.2
(54)
12.1
(53.8)
10.1
(50.2)
7.5
(45.5)
5.0
(41)
2.9
(37.2)
2.2
(36)
3.6
(38.5)
5.1
(41.2)
6.9
(44.4)
8.9
(48)
10.6
(51.1)
7.3
(45.1)

Record low °C (°F)
2.5
(36.5)
3.4
(38.1)
0.5
(32.9)
−1.5
(29.3)
−3
(27)
−4.9
(23.2)
−5.2
(22.6)
−3.5
(25.7)
−2.4
(27.7)
−1.4
(29.5)
−2
(28)
2.0
(35.6)
−5.2
(22.6)

Average rainfall mm (inches)
46.3
(1.823)
31.3
(1.232)
34.9
(1.374)
53.2
(2.094)
62.4
(2.457)
67.8
(2.669)
76.5
(3.012)
85.9
(3.382)
66.5
(2.618)
51.6
(2.031)
49.7
(1.957)
47.2
(1.858)
673.3
(26.508)

Average rainy days (≥ 0.2 mm)
7.7
6.3
6.4
9.0
10.7
12.6
14.5
15.1
14.0
11.7
9.9
8.7
126.6

Average afternoon relative humidity (%)
48
49
48
56
63
69
69
63
59
54
52
49
56.6

Mean monthly sunshine hours
285.2
256.9
241.8
198.0
155.0
135.0
142.6
170.5
201.0
254.2
267.0
282.1
2,589.3

Source #1: Bureau of Meteorology (1981–2010 averages;[18] extremes 1980–present)[19]

Source #2: Bureau of Meteorology, Launceston Airport (1981–2004 sunshine hours)[20]

text: Ouse[edit]

text: Due to its inland location, Ouse has relatively warm summers and cool winters with a high diurnal range and low precipitation throughout the months. Frost is common in the winter.

text:
[hide]Climate data for Ouse Fire Station

Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year

Record high °C (°F)
40.7
(105.3)
39.0
(102.2)
36.4
(97.5)
30.5
(86.9)
26.0
(78.8)
19.3
(66.7)
19.6
(67.3)
22.5
(72.5)
27.1
(80.8)
30.8
(87.4)
33.6
(92.5)
38.0
(100.4)
40.7
(105.3)

Average high °C (°F)
25.4
(77.7)
25.3
(77.5)
22.3
(72.1)
18.3
(64.9)
14.8
(58.6)
11.9
(53.4)
11.7
(53.1)
13.6
(56.5)
15.8
(60.4)
17.9
(64.2)
21.0
(69.8)
23.0
(73.4)
18.4
(65.1)

Average low °C (°F)
10.1
(50.2)
10.0
(50)
7.9
(46.2)
4.9
(40.8)
3.6
(38.5)
1.4
(34.5)
1.0
(33.8)
2.0
(35.6)
3.9
(39)
5.3
(41.5)
7.2
(45)
8.7
(47.7)
5.5
(41.9)

Record low °C (°F)
−0.4
(31.3)
0.2
(32.4)
−3.2
(26.2)
−5.6
(21.9)
−6.3
(20.7)
−7.8
(18)
−6.8
(19.8)
−6.7
(19.9)
−4.3
(24.3)
−3.5
(25.7)
−2.7
(27.1)
0.0
(32)
−7.8
(18)

Average precipitation mm (inches)
26.3
(1.035)
31.3
(1.232)
31.1
(1.224)
29.7
(1.169)
34.0
(1.339)
41.8
(1.646)
48.1
(1.894)
64.2
(2.528)
67.8
(2.669)
51.8
(2.039)
38.7
(1.524)
33.9
(1.335)
506.3
(19.933)

Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1mm)
8.5
8.0
9.6
10.2
13.3
14.6
16.6
16.8
15.8
15.4
12.2
11.2
152.2

Average relative humidity (%)
39
41
47
55
63
71
68
61
57
54
49
43
54

Source: [21]

text: Burnie[edit]

text: The average temperature in summer ranges from 12.5 to 21 °C with drier non-sea breeze days as warm as 27 °C, with around 16 hours of sunshine per day. In winter, temperature ranges from 6 to 13 °C, and only 8 hours of sunshine. Relative humidity averages over 60% for the year in the afternoon.

text: Burnie averages 994 mm of rainfall per year. Most of the rain is in the second half of the year from July to December.

text:
[hide]Climate data for Burnie

Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year

Record high °C (°F)
33.8
(92.8)
31.0
(87.8)
28.9
(84)
26.2
(79.2)
24.0
(75.2)
18.8
(65.8)
18.2
(64.8)
18.9
(66)
22.4
(72.3)
27.6
(81.7)
31.5
(88.7)
31.2
(88.2)
33.8
(92.8)

Average high °C (°F)
21.1
(70)
21.3
(70.3)
20.1
(68.2)
17.7
(63.9)
15.3
(59.5)
13.5
(56.3)
12.7
(54.9)
13.1
(55.6)
14.3
(57.7)
15.9
(60.6)
17.8
(64)
19.5
(67.1)
16.9
(62.4)

Average low °C (°F)
12.6
(54.7)
13.3
(55.9)
12.0
(53.6)
10.0
(50)
8.4
(47.1)
6.7
(44.1)
5.9
(42.6)
6.1
(43)
6.8
(44.2)
8.0
(46.4)
9.7
(49.5)
11.1
(52)
9.2
(48.6)

Record low °C (°F)
2.8
(37)
3.9
(39)
3.5
(38.3)
0.5
(32.9)
0.0
(32)
−1.1
(30)
−1.7
(28.9)
−2.0
(28.4)
0.0
(32)
−0.8
(30.6)
1.0
(33.8)
2.9
(37.2)
−2.0
(28.4)

Average precipitation mm (inches)
44.1
(1.736)
43.7
(1.72)
51.5
(2.028)
74.4
(2.929)
92.8
(3.654)
102.0
(4.016)
123.2
(4.85)
112.3
(4.421)
88.9
(3.5)
84.8
(3.339)
69.2
(2.724)
63.9
(2.516)
950.2
(37.409)

Source: Bureau of Meteorology[22]

text: Queenstown[edit]

text: Queenstown has a very wet climate, and is one of the wettest locations in Tasmania with an annual average rainfall of 2408.2 mm (94.8 in), spread throughout the year.

text:
[hide]Climate data for Queenstown

Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year

Record high °C (°F)
37.3
(99.1)
36.3
(97.3)
35.9
(96.6)
29.5
(85.1)
25.0
(77)
19.5
(67.1)
19.5
(67.1)
21.0
(69.8)
26.4
(79.5)
29.0
(84.2)
33.3
(91.9)
35.3
(95.5)
37.3
(99.1)

Average high °C (°F)
21.0
(69.8)
22.0
(71.6)
19.9
(67.8)
16.6
(61.9)
14.4
(57.9)
12.2
(54)
11.6
(52.9)
12.4
(54.3)
13.5
(56.3)
15.9
(60.6)
17.6
(63.7)
19.3
(66.7)
16.4
(61.5)

Average low °C (°F)
8.3
(46.9)
8.6
(47.5)
7.6
(45.7)
6.5
(43.7)
4.5
(40.1)
2.7
(36.9)
2.4
(36.3)
3.1
(37.6)
4.0
(39.2)
5.1
(41.2)
6.4
(43.5)
7.9
(46.2)
5.6
(42.1)

Record low °C (°F)
0.0
(32)
0.0
(32)
−1.1
(30)
−2.6
(27.3)
−6.0
(21.2)
−6.2
(20.8)
−6.7
(19.9)
−5.5
(22.1)
−3.9
(25)
−3.3
(26.1)
−1.5
(29.3)
−0.6
(30.9)
−6.7
(19.9)

Average rainfall mm (inches)
149.9
(5.902)
98.8
(3.89)
147.2
(5.795)
211.3
(8.319)
241.4
(9.504)
212.7
(8.374)
268.6
(10.575)
267.5
(10.531)
248.5
(9.783)
209.9
(8.264)
183.7
(7.232)
168.7
(6.642)
2,408.2
(94.811)

Average rainy days (≥ 0.2mm)
17.2
12.9
17.3
20.6
21.2
19.9
23.7
24.6
23.1
21.7
19.7
18.6
240.5

Average relative humidity (%)
60
60
65
72
76
77
77
73
71
64
63
63
68

Source: Bureau of Meteorology[23]

text: Liawenee[edit]

text: Owing to its high altitude location in the far south of Australia, Liawenee is one of the few places in the continent with a subpolar oceanic climate (Köppen Cfc).

text:
[hide]Climate data for Liawenee

Month
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Year

Record high °C (°F)
35.0
(95)
31.6
(88.9)
29.5
(85.1)
24.0
(75.2)
19.8
(67.6)
14.5
(58.1)
12.1
(53.8)
16.8
(62.2)
19.2
(66.6)
25.4
(77.7)
29.5
(85.1)
32.0
(89.6)
35.0
(95)

Average high °C (°F)
18.6
(65.5)
18.7
(65.7)
16.2
(61.2)
12.7
(54.9)
9.2
(48.6)
6.2
(43.2)
5.5
(41.9)
6.4
(43.5)
9.1
(48.4)
11.9
(53.4)
14.7
(58.5)
17.0
(62.6)
12.2
(54)

Average low °C (°F)
5.5
(41.9)
5.5
(41.9)
3.7
(38.7)
2.0
(35.6)
0.3
(32.5)
−1.1
(30)
−1.5
(29.3)
−1.8
(28.8)
−0.5
(31.1)
0.7
(33.3)
2.1
(35.8)
3.9
(39)
1.6
(34.9)

Record low °C (°F)
−4.0
(24.8)
−3.5
(25.7)
−5.0
(23)
−6.5
(20.3)
−8.9
(16)
−10.4
(13.3)
−12.2
(10)
−11.1
(12)
−7.7
(18.1)
−6.4
(20.5)
−5.6
(21.9)
−4.3
(24.3)
−12.2
(10)

Average precipitation mm (inches)
67.6
(2.661)
48.7
(1.917)
53.9
(2.122)
78.9
(3.106)
89.7
(3.531)
99.7
(3.925)
128.6
(5.063)
122.1
(4.807)
111.9
(4.406)
91.8
(3.614)
75.0
(2.953)
75.8
(2.984)
1,042.1
(41.028)

Average rainy days
12.9
10.2
13.4
17.1
18.8
20.3
23.0
22.5
19.9
18.4
15.8
14.3
206.6

Mean monthly sunshine hours
269.7
243.0
235.6
177.0
145.7
108.0
108.5
161.2
180.0
238.7
255.0
275.9
2,398.3

Source: Bureau of Meteorology[24]


document_title: Pretty Little Liars (book series)

question_text: what's the first pretty little liars book

question_tokens: what 's the first pretty little liars book

text: Pretty Little Liars (book series)

text: Overview[edit]

text: The series is loosely divided into four arcs, chronicling the introduction and reveal of each "A". Set in the suburbs of Philadelphia, the series follows the lives of four teenage girls nicknamed the Pretty little Liars or simply the Liars, whose clique falls apart after the disappearance of their Queen bee leader, "Alison DiLaurentis". Three years after her disappearance, the girls begin receiving threatening messages from an anonymous character named "A," who threatens to expose their secrets, including long-hidden ones they thought only Alison knew. Shortly after the messages begin, Alison's body is discovered buried in her yard. The books progress with the four girls trying to figure out the identity of "A" and facing many dangerous obstacles and twists as they do so.

text: Characters[edit]

text: The series has many characters, most of them recurring. The main characters are:

text: Spencer Hastings: Spencer is a headstrong, intelligent, overachieving girl who comes from the wealthy Hastings family.

text: Hanna Marin: Hanna is the bubbly, strong, and fierce "it-girl" of the group following Alison's disappearance. She suffers from an eating disorder, about which she received taunts from Alison.

text: Aria Montgomery: Aria is a quirky and artsy girl who, at the beginning of the books, is trying to find herself.

text: Emily Fields: Emily is considered the jock of the group, being a physical, loyal girl who struggles with her sexuality.

text: Alison DiLaurentis: Alison is the former "Queen Bee" of her clique, consisting of: Spencer, Hanna, Aria and Emily. She had supposedly been killed at the beginning of the series however is revealed to have been alive and also their tormentor "A" as she was mistaken for her twin sister Courtney who pretended to be like her and was sent to The Preserve at Addison-Stevens, which she believed was the Liars' fault and has been plotting revenge ever since.

text: Her identical twin sister Courtney DiLaurentis is not crazy but she starts appearing in Wanted after the TV show began in 2010. In the prequel, Courtney-as-Ali started disappearing in the last chapter and getting almost killed numerous times, until the end of the series (Vicious) when Ali-as-Courtney came out and started becoming friends with her twin "Ali" again after rehab with Iris and Tabitha, two lookalikes of Ali, all in the penultimate chapter.

text: In the book, their older brother's name is Jason DiLaurentis and their half-sisters are Melissa and Spencer Hastings.

text: Courtney DiLaurentis: Courtney is really Charlotte in the books. She used to be sweet, until she started pretending to be Alison, where her personality morphed into her. She is the third child to Jessica and Kenneth and was sent to The Preserve at Addison-Stevens after a physical argument with Alison who she eventually turned into and befriended the Liars up until the night of her infamous disappearance when she was killed and buried by the real Alison DiLaurentis and her accomplice Nick Maxwell.

text: A: A is the main antagonist of the series, being, for the most part, an anonymous character who relentlessly torments many characters, in particular the Liars. Mona Vanderwaal, Alison DiLaurentis and Nick Maxwell are discovered to be A. Mona became A due to Alison and the Liars being responsible for The Jenna Thing, which burned her too. However, she is killed when Spencer pushes her off a cliff face and her neck is caught between rocks. However, a new "A" rises, this time even more determined to hurt the Liars. This A is revealed to be Alison herself who wanted revenge on the Liars for ruining her life and Nick, who is revealed to be her accomplice.

text: Novels[edit]

text: First Arc[edit]

text:
Book #
Title
Publication Date
ISBN
Pages

1
Pretty Little Liars
October 3, 2006
978-0-06-088730-8
304

The story introduces an exclusive group of friends: Alison DiLaurentis, the popular yet manipulative queen bee; Aria Montgomery, an independent girl who is considered to be the oddball in Rosewood who also went to Iceland for the summer; Emily Fields, a swimmer who holds secret feelings for Alison; Hanna Marin, who strives to be thin and popular like Alison; and Spencer Hastings, an overachiever who is brave enough to stand up against Alison's manipulative ways. Alison mysteriously disappears during a sleepover with the girls in the summer before 8th grade.
The story then jumps 3 years later, when the girls are living their own lives and don't speak to each other.
Aria returns to Rosewood from a 3-year trip to Iceland with her family and comes back much more sophisticated than before she left. She meets and makes out with a guy in a local bar who is revealed later to be her English teacher, Ezra Fitz.
Emily befriends the new girl in town, Maya St. Germain, and soon develops romantic feelings for her, even though Emily has a boyfriend, Ben. Ben later finds Maya and Emily kissing in the photo booth at a party and dumps beer on them.
Hanna is the new popular girl in town alongside the former nerd, Mona Vanderwaal. However, she and Mona sometimes shoplift though both can clearly afford their steals. Hanna battles the urge to turn back to bulimia, and struggles to manage the stress of keeping her queen bee status.
Spencer continues to struggle in her long-standing rivalry with Melissa Hastings, her perfect older sister. Problems occur when she begins to feel attracted to Melissa's new boyfriend, Wren Kim.
Throughout the story, the liars get messages threatening to reveal their secrets of the present and past, including a terrifying incident the girls refer to as "The Jenna Thing". They automatically believe it is their missing friend, Alison, because she is the only one each of them confided in regarding their darkest secrets. However, they are shocked when the police find her corpse buried in the gazebo of her former house. The book ends with the liars receiving a text at Alison's funeral saying, "I'm still here, bitches. And I know everything. -A ". The girls have made up at this point.

2
Flawless
March 27, 2007
978-0-06-088733-9
330

Spencer Hastings, Hanna Marin, Aria Montgomery, and Emily Fields continue to receive text messages from an unknown person, "A", and are more desperate than ever to discover the identity of "A", who is still taunting them with the threat of exposing their many secrets. At first the girls think "A" is Alison, because she is the only person who knew their secrets, but then they start to believe the person behind the threats is Toby, because some messages they receive refer to 'The Jenna Thing' and with Alison dead, he is the only other person who was a part of the incident, although everyone but Spencer is unaware of why he took the blame for what happened to Jenna.
"The Jenna Thing" is revealed to be an incident in which Ali had set off a stink bomb in Jenna Cavanaugh's step-brother Toby's treehouse to get revenge after supposedly spying on her, only to see the treehouse burst into flames, not knowing that Jenna was inside, and due to that, she was permanently blinded. Toby was framed for the garage fire by Alison.
"A" sends Emily a text message hinting that "A" knows about Emily and Maya's romantic relationship and threatens to tell everyone about it. Emily becomes close with Toby and goes to a big benefit party with him but then later tells him that she thinks she might be gay.
"A" leaves a note for Hanna that forces her to tell Naomi and Riley that she makes herself throw up and that Sean was the one who broke up with her. Later on, she receives a text that tells her Sean is at Foxy with another girl. Hanna is shocked to discover her former boyfriend Sean Ackard ignoring his Virginity Club vows and nearly having sex with Aria.
"A" continuously tells Aria to either 'get rid of the problem' or to tell her mom the truth about Byron, her father, that he is seeing another woman. Aria goes to confront the other woman, Meredith, but when she does Meredith tells her that she and Aria's father are in love. Ella finds out that Byron is having an affair with a student named Meredith Gates and kicks him out, leaving Ella and Aria's mother-daughter relationship shattered.
Spencer continues to date with her sister Melissa's now ex-boyfriend Wren and later loses her virginity to him. However, Melissa starts to hook-up with him as well and eventually makes sure that he will be out of both of their lives for good.
Emily blames herself for Toby's suicide. In this book it is revealed that Toby was forcing himself on Jenna when they were in middle school and Ali and Spencer were the only ones who knew about it, which is how Alison forced Toby to take the blame.

3
Perfect
August 21, 2007
978-0-06-088736-0
298

Now homeless, Aria goes to live with her new boyfriend, Sean Ackard. Still seeing Ezra, their relationship is broken up when Sean informs the police, having found out the secret from "A".
Emily plans to go to the police to stop "A", which leads to "A" taking revenge by outing her to the whole school. Emily's parents threaten to send her away if she does not attend a "de-gaying" program, however, Emily realizes she can't change who she is.
Spencer is nominated for a Golden Orchid Award for the essay she copied from her sister Melissa, which "A" threatens to expose. Spencer's family discovers she cheated on her Golden Orchid essay, but keep it quiet to protect their reputation. Spencer comes to believe she might have killed Alison after discovering she suffers from rage-induced blackouts.
Hanna and Mona get into a fight, and Hanna seeks comfort with an "uncool" boy named Lucas. She goes to Mona's birthday party but gets humiliated, but she receives a text from "A" and recognizes the number. She intends to reveal the true identity of "A" to the other girls, but is run down by "A" before she can do so. The girls recognize it is A from the eerie text: She Knew Too Much-A

4
Unbelievable
May 27, 2008
978-0-06-088739-1
335

Hanna barely survives being rundown by "A", and due to a head injury, she loses her memory of the previous day, thus forgetting "A"'s identity.
Emily's parents catch her with Maya at a party and send her to Iowa to live with her strict, religious relatives. She is glad to be safe from "A", but after Emily is accused of threatening her cousins, she runs away. Emily returns home when she sees her parents on TV, who tell her that they love her and accept her for who she is. Emily and Maya are reunited, but Trista, a girl who Emily had met and flirted with in Iowa comes to visit, their relationship is shattered, and Emily is saddened further when she sees Trista and Noel hooking up.
After being kicked out of Sean's house, Aria reluctantly moves in with Byron and Meredith, who announces that she is pregnant and when Bryon's and Ella's divorce is finalized, they are to be married. While at Hollis College, Aria takes an art class and befriends Jenna, who she suspects could be "A".
"A" reveals to Melissa (Spencer's sister) that Spencer stole her essay for the Golden Orchid competition, but the family keeps quiet to protect their reputation. Melissa and Spencer grow closer, and Spencer confesses that she kissed Ian, and that he and Alison were secretly dating. When fragments of her memory from the night Alison died are restored, Spencer is horrified when it dawns on her that she may have accidentally killed Alison.
Mona and Hanna's friendship is restored, and to celebrate Hanna's recovery, Mona and Spencer plan a party for her. Spencer is surprised to discover that she enjoys Mona's company, and even more so when Mona tells her that she has been receiving messages from "A". Hanna is thrilled that Spencer approves of Mona, and they consider letting her join their clique.
"A" tells Aria that Meredith has a secret job at Hooters, and she goes there with Mike, only to discover that "A" was lying. Darren Wilden and several other cops are there, and Aria is tempted to tell them about "A". When Mike realizes that something is troubling his sister, he urges her to tell Darren, and she eventually does. On the night of Hanna's party, Aria tells Jenna what happened the night she was blinded and apologizes for not stopping Alison, but Jenna reveals that she and Alison had planned it together to get rid of Toby. Aria asks Jenna about "A", but Jenna becomes scared and quickly leaves, hinting that she knows who "A" is.
Melissa confronts Spencer about seeing Ian behind her back, which Spencer denies, and when she leaves, Spencer and Mona discover another note from "A" and suspect that Melissa killed Alison because she was jealous of her relationship with Ian. They inform the others, and decide to turn Melissa in. Mona drives Spencer to the police station, and Aria tells Emily and Hanna the truth about The Jenna Thing. When Hanna says that one in four boys sexually abuse their sister, Emily tells her not to believe everything she hears, which causes Hanna's memory to return, and she is horrified when she remembers who "A" is: Mona.
Spencer is hesitant about turning in Melissa, but Mona comforts her and convinces her otherwise. Moments later, Spencer receives a text from Emily, telling her that Mona is "A". When she receives several more from the girls, who are worrying about what Mona will do, Mona realizes that they finally figured it out. While Aria, Emily and Hanna go to the police station to tell Darren that Mona is "A", Mona drives Spencer to Floating Man's Quarry, where she explains that she saw what happened on the night of The Jenna Thing, and when Maya moved in, she found Alison's diary, which contained the girls' secrets. Using the information to her advantage, she got a new phone and became "A" to get revenge on the girls for blinding Jenna. Spencer accuses Mona of killing Alison, but Mona says that it was Ian who killed her, as Alison had blackmailed him about their relationship.
Spencer secretly calls Darren, who overhears her conversation with Mona and learns of their location. Mona tells Spencer that she originally planned to frame her for Alison's murder, but recently grew to like her, and thus decided to frame Melissa to do Spencer a favor. She then offers Spencer her life in return that she becomes "A" with her, as they could pin the blame on someone else. Spencer refuses and Mona attacks her. They fight on the cliff's edge, and in the struggle, Spencer accidentally pushes Mona off the cliff to her death. Aria, Emily and Hanna arrive on the scene with Darren and police, and find Mona's body and an unconscious Spencer.

text: Second Arc[edit]

text:
Book #
Title
Publication Date
ISBN
Pages

5
Wicked
November 25, 2008
978-0-06-156607-3
310

A new "A" begins making threats. Ian denies being Ali's killer.
Emily finds herself confused about her sexuality once again, as she now has feelings for a boy she met at church, Christian singer Isaac. Emily tries to date Isaac without him finding out about her orientation, though "A" keeps interfering. Emily tells Isaac about Maya and he then hugs her and tell her that he accepts her for who she is.
Hanna, still overcome with shock after discovering Mona Vanderwaal was really "A", can't seem to catch a break. She now has trouble with her stepsister Kate Randall. At a party at a hotel opening, Hanna and Kate continue to fight over title of "Queen Bee". Hanna and Lucas break up after Hanna tells everyone that Kate has herpes at a party to sabotage her. Eventually, Hanna's father forbids her from talking to anyone except Kate.
Aria has feelings for a man, Xavier, who she met at an art show; however, he ends up meeting and dating her mother through an online match site. This puts her at risk of hurting her mother again and further damaging their newly repaired relationship. Aria moves in with Meredith and Byron to avoid Xavier as his true intentions will jeopardize Aria and Ella's relationship.
After a shock at her gran's will reading and her family neglecting her, Spencer comes to believe that she is adopted and starts searching a reuniting website for answers.
In the end, Spencer, Emily, Aria, and Hanna find Ian's body in the woods behind Spencer's house, but when they return with the police, the body is missing. Wilden sort of pushes it off, and begins the search hours after the girls had shared their story.

6
Killer
June 30, 2009
978-0-06-156611-0
321

The girls discover that the person they think is Ali's murderer — Ian Thomas — has actually been framed, and they start to wonder if the new "A" really wants to threaten them or just to solve the mystery.
Spencer meets a woman named Olivia Caldwell who she thinks is her real mother, and attempts to move to New York, but it turns out to be a scam and she loses her college money.
Hanna and Kate compete for the affections of Aria's brother Mike Montgomery.
Aria falls in love with Jason DiLaurentis again.
Emily has sex with her new boyfriend Isaac, whose mother finds out and banishes Emily from their house without Isaac knowing. At the opening party for Radley, a former so-called "haven for troubled youth", Emily finds proof that Jason DiLaurentis had been a patient there, and soon Hanna, Aria, and Emily all come to believe that Jason and Darren Wilden had something to do with Ali's murder.
Ian Thomas confirms their suspicions about Darren and Jason right before someone sets the woods behind Spencer's house to fire. Although at first they had their doubts about Ian being alive, they are now confident he is.
While Aria is trying to get to Spencer's barn to show them Ali's flag from 6th grade, she finds someone caught in the woods because of the fire, saves this person, and then they all recognize her as Ali.

7
Heartless
January 19, 2010
978-0-06-156614-1
274

After the fire, no one believes the girls when they insist that they saw Alison.
"A" sends Emily to Lancaster, where Emily comes to believe that Ali was not the girl in the hole, but that Wilden has murdered a girl named Leah and covered it up by making it seem like it was Ali.
Aria begins a relationship with Noel Kahn, after he defends her at a party. She visits a medium, who produces a message in Ali's handwriting that states that "Ali killed Ali." This leads her to believe that Ali might have committed suicide.
Hanna's father sends her to a clinic to prevent her eating disorder from reappearing due to stress, where she befriends a troubled girl named Iris. Hanna has more dreams about Ali, which causes her to suspect that Iris had something to do with Ali's death.
"A" reveals to Spencer that her father had an affair (and that Alison is Spencer's half-sister), making her suspicious of her mother.
The Liars are arrested for Ali's murder. They realize that "A" has tricked each of them into believing someone else killed Ali. However, a man named Billy Ford is soon arrested for murdering Alison and Jenna Cavanaugh. Everyone now believes Ian is dead.

8
Wanted
June 8, 2010
978-0-06-156617-2
259

Aria, Hanna, Emily and Spencer are shocked to learn of the existence of Alison's twin sister, Courtney, when she's introduced at a press conference. Courtney had spent her life in institutions due to "health issues" and her existence was kept secret by her family. It is revealed that Jason was not a patient at the Radley but instead he was visiting Courtney. She was finally released and went home to Rosewood, where she attempts to resume her sister's life and begins tentative friendships with Ali's old friends. She later reveals that she's actually Ali, the real Courtney had pretended to be her on the night of Ali's disappearance, and she was the one who was killed. When she had tried to tell her family who she was, they didn't believe her because Courtney was notorious for pretending to be Ali, and sent her back to the institution in Courtney's place. The girls are thrilled that Ali is back, and jump at the chance to go with her to the family's house in the Poconos after a school dance.
On the way there, Spencer gets a frantic call from her mother telling her that Melissa has disappeared. Spencer had begun to believe that her sister was the one who killed Ali and that she may be after the rest of them, but once they arrive at the house it's revealed that Ali is the killer. They discover that the girl they were friends with years ago was actually Courtney, and the real Ali was stuck in an institution. She had killed Courtney for ruining her life, attempted to kill the girls in the forest fire, tried to have them arrested, and is now going to kill them by setting the house on fire.
They're able to escape after stumbling onto Ian's body hidden in a closet and releasing a bound Melissa, who Ali had kidnapped and was planning to kill as well. Ali is trapped inside the house and it's assumed she died in the fire, although her body is never found.
After learning that her ex-husband shipped Hanna off to a mental institution, Ashley Marin transfers back to Rosewood and kicks Hanna's father, Isabel and Kate out of the house, thrilling Hanna. Hanna and Mike get back together.
Meredith goes into labor, giving birth to a girl named Lola. Aria and Noel get back together after it is revealed that Ali kissed him, not the other way around, and Ella breaks up with Xavier after learning of his inappropriate behavior towards Aria.
Spencer's father proclaims that even though he and her mother may not get back together, things are going to change for the better in their family, and Spencer and Melissa grow closer after almost being killed.
Emily buries everything she can find that reminds her of Ali at Courtney's grave, hoping she can finally find closure, but is unsure of whether the noises she hears at the cemetery are real or imagined. And somewhere, a new girl starts her senior year at an anonymous school, a girl whose name just so happens to be an anagram of Alison DiLaurentis. The reader is left wondering if Alison is alive.

text: Third Arc[edit]

text:
Book #
Title
Publication Date
ISBN
Pages

9
Twisted
July 5, 2011
978-0-06-208101-8
305

The book begins with the girls vacationing in Jamaica and Emily seeing a girl who she believes is Ali. Throughout the rest of the book, details about that fateful vacation emerge.
In the meantime, Noel, Aria's boyfriend, has an exchange student, from Finland, come to live with him. Instead of being the nerdy boy, Klaudius, that Noel expected, the exchange student turns out to be a gorgeous blonde, Klaudia, who tries to steal Noel from Aria. Aria ends up accidentally pushing Klaudia off of a ski lift as an act of self-defense; however, Klaudia uses that information against Aria. By that point, Aria and Noel's relationship is shaky and uncertain.
Emily meets a new girl, Chloe, who moves into the Cavanaugh's old house. They immediately become good friends, bonding over Chloe's baby sister, Grace. Emily has now given up hope of getting a swim scholarship, her only option for college. Chloe's dad offers to help but also hits on Emily, even making sexual moves towards her. Chloe walks in on her dad kissing Emily, but thinks that it's Emily who is wrecking her family (her father had previously been cheating).
Hanna's dad runs for senator of Pennsylvania. Patrick, somebody who's helping out at the set, offers Hanna a modeling job, but he takes some naughty pictures and threatens her with them, saying he will release them to the public and ruin her dads' chances of becoming senator, unless she gives him $10,000. Hanna steals money from her dad and frames Jeremiah, a mean man who is also working on set.
Spencer's mom has begun to date Nicholas Pennythistle, the father of snobby Amelia and her brother Zach, in whom Spencer develops a romantic interest. When they go out dancing, she kisses him, only to find out Zach is gay. When the Hastings and Pennythistles travel to New York together, Spencer and Zach drunkenly fall asleep in the same bed. During the night, Spencer had kicked off her clothes because she was hot, leaving her in her blouse and underwear. The next morning Mr. Pennythistle wakes them both up by entering the room. Their indecent clothing and close proximity leads Mr. Pennythistle to believe that they had slept together and acts violent. Spencer tells him that Zach didn't touch her and that he's gay, hoping to help, but Mr. Pennythistle becomes furious and sends Zach to military school. Zach and Spencer's friendship ends, Zach leaving Spencer with the words "Rot in hell, bitch".
The girls start to get messages from a new "A", and believe it's Ali and that she somehow survived the fall from the building. In the end of the book, the news turns on and a teenage girl's dead body was found floating in the water in Jamaica. They identify this girl as Tabitha Clark from New Jersey. The cops believe her death was a tragic accident - not a murder. The girls realize they killed an innocent girl.

10
Ruthless
December 6, 2011
978-0-06-208186-5
338

It is revealed that last summer while Spencer was taking AP courses at Penn, she began taking speed pills as a way to help with studying. After being arrested by the police for possession, she arranges for Hanna to help her frame her roommate, Kelsey, as a dealer, in order for Spencer to not face charges. After landing the role of Lady Macbeth in the school play, the stress and guilt begin to take their toll on Spencer, causing her to have frequent hallucinations in which she is haunted by Kelsey and Tabitha. She becomes paranoid and begins to believe Kelsey is "A" and is taking revenge on her for being framed.
Emily accidentally meets Kelsey at a party and is instantly smitten with her. She and Kelsey grow close, much to Spencer's disapproval. After Emily is hurt by Spencer's remarks about her love for Alison, she angrily tells Kelsey that Spencer framed her for the drug possession. Depressed, Kelsey overdoses and attempts to throw herself into the quarry where Mona died, but Emily saves her and Kelsey is sent to the Preserve for treatment. While visiting Kelsey, the girls realize that Tabitha was also a patient at the Preserve and was the same age as Alison and Courtney.
Hanna's father asks her to help with the social media aspect of his campaigning. She meets a boy named Liam, who she falls for, despite knowing he is the son of her father's political opponent. They break up when she learns he has been seeing multiple other girls while dating her, and reconciles with Mike.
After Aria is dumped by Noel, she seeks out comfort in Ezra, in hopes of rekindling their romance. However, things are strained between them, and Aria eventually goes back into a relationship with Noel, after discovering Ezra and Klaudia being intimate.
The Liars attempt to circumvent "A's" threats by coming clean about their secrets, with varied success. Meanwhile, "A" becomes more violent, shoving Emily down a hill at Stockbridge trail. "A" sends Spencer an email of Tabitha on the beach with a head injury, indicating that "A" was the one who disposed of Tabitha's body. "A" taunts the Liars, stating they will never discover "A's" true identity. Kelsey cannot be A. Emily and Spencer have their biggest rivalry.

11
Stunning
June 5, 2012
978-0-06-208189-6
302

The Liars begin to suspect a woman, Gayle, might be "A", when she comes to Rosewood and begins to harass them; it is revealed that Emily backed out of a deal to let Gayle adopt her daughter in exchange for $50,000 paid under the table. Emily finds herself reconnecting with Isaac while attempting to tell him about her pregnancy, but she fears the repercussions of such a confession.
Spencer visits Princeton hoping to join an Eating Club, but "A" interferes and spikes Spencer's pot brownies with LSD and Ritalin.
Aria panics when she finds out Noel's father is a drag queen and ends up putting her relationship with Noel at risk when "A" threatens Aria to expose Noel's father photo publicly.
On a tip from "A", Hanna begins spying on Mike's new girlfriend, Colleen. Later she becomes publicly humiliated by "A" when she sends everybody a video of Hanna stalking Colleen, and her desperate ways of getting Mike back.
Gayle is murdered by "A" and it is revealed that she was Tabitha's stepmother. Tabitha's father speaks at Gayle's funeral, and announces that Tabitha's autopsy showed no trace of alcohol, meaning that she was murdered. He thus plans to re-open the investigation into her death, and threatens the killer that he will find him, both Gayle's and Tabitha's killer. The girls get very nervous about this.

12
Burned
December 4, 2012
978-0-06-208192-6
319

It is revealed that prior to the events of Twisted, the Liars covered up Hanna's involvement in a car accident that left another girl, Madison, badly injured. While on a school-sponsored cruise in the Caribbean, the Liars uncover clues that suggest "A" is more than one person. They begin to suspect Naomi Zeigler of being "A", after she befriends Hanna (who is unaware that Madison is Naomi's cousin) and attempts to sabotage Spencer's new relationship. Aria becomes friends with a boy named Graham, only to discover he is Tabitha's ex-boyfriend, leading the Liars come to believe that Naomi and Graham are working together as "A". Meanwhile, Emily falls for a stowaway, Jordan, unaware that she is a thief on the run from the authorities.
After an explosion on the boat, the Liars go off on their own to bury "evidence" of their connection to Tabitha (Tabitha's locket, which "A" had planted for Noel to find). "A" tampers with their lifeboat, nearly stranding them in the middle of the ocean. The near-death experience pushes the girls into wanting to confess about killing Tabitha. However, as they make plans to come clean about everything, they discover that they were not responsible for Tabitha's death at all: She had been bludgeoned to death by "A".
The Liars finally come to believe that "A" is, in fact, Alison, as Emily reveals that she may have helped Alison escape the burning Poconos house in Wanted. Suspiciously though Naomi was at Gayle's funeral.

text: Fourth Arc[edit]

text:
Book #
Title
Publication Date
ISBN
Pages

13
Crushed
June 4, 2013
978-0-06-219971-3
340

Weeks before the annual Rosewood Day Prom, the four girls are put under much stress. They break down and try being one step ahead of "A", and marking off who their suspects could be. In this novel it is revealed there are two people working as A. Spencer, Hanna, and Emily agree that the main suspect is Noel Kahn, Aria's boyfriend. Aria doesn't want to believe it but the facts tell her otherwise. He was on the trip to Jamaica, he went to Iceland. He was good friends with Ali (he loved her), and he visited her in the Preserve when she was there. He knew about the twins. He knew enough to make him look like A. Emily tries getting information of out of Ali's old friends, Iris, (who we met in ''Heartless). Iris tells Emily little tidbits of Ali, and at Prom Iris recognizes Noel and for sure he was Ali's secret boyfriend who visited her. Spencer finds an internet blogger, who blogs about Alison DiLaurentis theories. She meets him and actually ends up liking him, finding his name is Chase. He helps Spencer get information on Alison. Hanna, in an attempt to get information on a burned victim from the last book, Graham, starts volunteering at the Burn Clinic. There, Graham is still in a coma and right when he's about to wake up, he dies -all the information is kept hidden for good. Aria, worried and paranoid about what happened last summer, is trying to handle things with Noel being A, even though she doesn't want to believe it. At Prom, Noel admits to loving Ali, and Aria, furious, freaks out and asks Noel if Ali is still alive. He says he doesn't know. While Aria is attempting to get away, Noel pins her to the ground. Spencer, Hanna, and Emily arrive and Noel flees. The morning later, Hanna gets a text from A saying to go to the shed in the Rosewood Day back. She and the three other girls go, and just in case bring Cops and police and inside is a supposedly unconscious Noel tied up to a chair. It is not revealed if Noel is dead or alive. The girls get a text, signed by A, informing them that they've failed to make progress, Noel wasn't A, and they are back where they started.

14
Deadly
December 3, 2013[5]
978-0-06-219974-4
320

The book starts out as the real Alison DiLaurentis is limping out of the burning house in her vacation home right after she tried to kill the liars. It's seemingly said in the start that she survived by the help of "Helper A" her boyfriend. Aria visits Noel in the hospital and it is shown that he is in fact still alive. Agent Fuji comes to the girls after they are arrested for the charges they have committed over the past year. The girls finally admit to Agent Fuji about "A" and told her that all of their charges had to be dropped. They also told her that they thought that Alison was still alive and that they needed 24-hour protection of their family. Agent Fuji tells the girls to give her all of the "A" notes and the girls do as they are told. As a result of telling the police, "A" gave the police a fake security video of the girls beating up Tabitha before she is killed. The police arrest all of them and told the girls that all of the texts from "A" had come from their phones. The girls are put on bail and go home. Emily's family seem to hate her and Emily and Carolyn get into a fight. As this happens Emily's mom has a heart attack. Hanna's father wants nothing to do with her because it will hurt the campaign. After their hearing they are sentenced to go to trial in Jamaica the next day. Certain to find "A" they go searching. They find a house by Hanna's fathers office and go inside. It is small and disgusting. As they are walking in Nick Maxwell comes in pointing a gun at the girls. He is "Helper A" Real Ali's boyfriend. The girls all know him as someone else. Spencer knows him as Phineas, a guy at Penn's summer program who sold her study drugs. Hanna knew him as Jackson, the bartender who kept on giving Madison drinks and refusing to get a cab, resulting in Hanna getting in a wreck with Madison. Emily knew him as Derrick, a friend she had at her job, telling him all of her secrets. And Aria knew him as Olaf, a guy she stole The Starry Night with while vacationing in Iceland. Right as they realized what was happening Alison shows up with a gun and tells the girls to get in the basement. They girls do as they are told and the go down. They see a mural of Ali on the wall and they are confused. Ali tells them that after she kills them that it is going to look like they did it to be with Ali because they were sad that she was gone. Astonished the girls ask questions. After, Nick and Ali grab gas masks and turn on a poisonous gas. They girls awake in the hospital and Agent Fuji tells them that Nick Maxwell was caught but not Ali. In the epilogue Ali is running away and goes to a little house that Nick didn't know of. She has money and reveals that she is going to lure someone else to kill with her again.

15
Toxic
June 3, 2014[6]
9780062287014
336

With A apparently arrested, the girls attempt to move on with their lives. Hanna gets a film offer, and Spencer starts an anti-bullying campaign. However, it is soon revealed that the real A is still seeking vengeance.

16
Vicious
December 2, 2014[7]
9780062287045

After being falsely accused of killing Alison, the girls seek to outwit her and avoid jail time.

text: Companion novels[edit]

text:
Book #
Title
Publication Date
ISBN
Pages

0.6
Alison's Pretty Little Diary
September 6, 2010
978-0-06-223336-3
14

Ali changed the lives of The Liars forever. But now thanks to this diary never seen before, you finally know what Alison was thinking in the day she picked those four girls to be her new best friends.

4.5
Pretty Little Secrets
January 3, 2012
978-0-06-212591-0
464

Set between Unbelievable and Wicked, the book is told from the point of view of the second "A", Alison DiLaurentis, as she spies on the girls during their Christmas vacation. The novel is divided into a series of four short stories, with each one focusing on the exploits of a specific girl.
Spencer: Spencer and her family go to Nana Hastings mansion in Florida, and Spencer falls in love with a tennis player named Colin at the country club. Melissa seems to be helping Spencer win Colin's heart, but Colin ends up taking an interest in Melissa. During the trip, Spencer and her mother also run into Mrs. DiLaurentis several times, and Spencer is confused by her mother's strange behavior around Mrs DiLaurentis. Spencer also decides to fight for Colin. After Colin dumps Melissa to go out with her, Spencer and Melissa discover that Colin's actually 33 years old and also has a wife and child. Spencer and Melissa decide to team up to get revenge on Colin by putting crushed Viagra in his Aminospa vitamin water right before his important tennis game. In the end, they all have a fun vacation, but Spencer worries that someone has been following her. Melissa and Spencer seem to briefly make up in this, hence the sisters' wary friendship in Wicked.
Emily: Emily is asked to go undercover as Santa Claus at the new mall, in order to catch 4 girls who work as elves there, who are suspected of vandalizing Christmas decorations around town, including Emily's mom's baby Jesus ceramic figure. The 4 girls, who call themselves the "Merry Elves", take a liking to Emily, and it's revealed that one of the girls, Cassie, was close with Alison. Emily accompanies the girls on their biggest prank yet, but Emily's mom uses her phone to track her, and the Merry Elves get caught. Eventually, the elves forgive Emily after she bails them out of jail. In the end, everyone realizes the true meaning of Christmas, but Emily can't shake off the weird feeling that someone is following her. It is revealed that A is blonde (she will later be revealed as Alison) as Emily sees a blonde figure run off.
Hanna: Hanna joins a boot camp after thinking she gained too much weight at a holiday party. She develops feelings for the instructor, Vince. She also develops a rival, Dinah, another girl who also likes Vince. After competing for Vince's affection, she and Dinah become friends after catching Kate making out with the mall's new Santa (prior to Emily), something which Hanna also photographs. After agreeing to stop chasing Vince, she celebrates by going out for drinks with Dinah, where Dinah admits she knew Alison. Hanna goes home drunk, causing her to oversleep. As she arrives at boot camp, she discovers Vince and Dinah kissing, revealing that Dinah only pretended to be friends with Hanna to have Hanna let down her guard. Hanna flees the scene, devastated, and is confronted by Kate, who, after receiving a tip-off, followed Hanna around, taking unflattering photos of her at boot camp, which she threatens to put on Facebook. Hanna counterattacks by showing Kate the pictures of her and Santa, causing Kate to back off. Hanna also improves her relationship with her father, who gives Hanna her grandmother's Cartier locket for Christmas. Hanna has a happy Christmas, despite the fact that she thinks someone other than Kate has been watching her every move. Some of what Dinah said may be true such as she knew Alison. But it is likely she made most of it up to get Hanna's trust.
Aria: Aria goes with her father and Mike to Bear Claw Resort, but leaves to go back home after finding out that Byron invited Meredith along as well. Upon arriving at home, Aria's surprised to see Halbjorn, an old boyfriend of hers from Iceland. Halbjorn tells her that he's running from the Icelandic police who're after him because he protested against the demolition of a puffin sanctuary. Unfortunately, his travel visa only lasts for a week. Aria proposes the idea of marrying him, and the two head off to Atlantic City to elope. At the hotel, they attend a magic show involving two panthers, which greatly angers Halbjorn, who cares a lot about the environment. After getting married the following day, which requires Aria to forge her mother's signature and lie about her age, they go to the place where the panthers are kept. After convincing Halbjorn not to release the panthers, they go back to the hotel. The next morning, Aria wakes up to find Halbjorn gone and his clothes missing as well. On the lobby's TV, Aria sees that Halbjorn ended up releasing the panthers anyway. Aria goes to the courthouse and confesses to lying about her age and forging her mother's signature, making the marriage null and void. Upon returning to Rosewood, she is joined by Mike and Byron, who know nothing about her marriage. As they watch TV, it shows that Halbjorn has been caught, and it also reveals that he's done these sorts of things in the past, including trying to blow up a demolition office. Aria's satisfied with breaking up with him, but is paranoid about someone following her. In Wicked, it's briefly stated that Aria and Meredith did converse about the baby.
The book ends with a sign-off from the new "A," (as always) who says that the Liars' lives are going to get a lot worse. All of which comes true...

0.5
Ali’s Pretty Little Lies
January 2, 2013
978-0062233363
304

Before there was "A," there was "Alison DiLaurentis". Boys wanted to date her, girls wanted to be her and somebody wanted her dead.
It's the end of seventh grade, and "Alison DiLaurentis" and her friends are the alpha girls of Rosewood Day. "Ali" runs her clique with an iron fist, and she's got enough dirt on Hanna, Emily, Aria and Spencer to keep them in line. But "Ali's" hiding a dark secret of her own, something so huge it would destroy everything if it ever got out. She's desperate to keep the perfect life she's worked so hard to build, but in Rosewood deadly secrets have deadly consequences.
Set in the weeks leading up to "Ali's" murder, this special Pretty Little Liars tale is told by the prettiest little liar of all: "Ali" herself. For the first time ever, we see how the mystery began—and how "Alison DiLaurentis'" life ended.
Note: This book is titled Ali's Pretty Little Lies but it's actually about her twin sister, Courtney, who pretended to be Alison because she didn't want to go to a psych ward. This book reveals a lot of secrets.