<P> Carl Linnaeus gave the loggerhead its first binomial name , Testudo caretta , in 1758 . Thirty - five other names emerged over the following two centuries , with the combination Caretta caretta first introduced in 1902 by Leonhard Stejneger . The English common name `` loggerhead '' refers to the animal 's large head . The loggerhead sea turtle belongs to the family Cheloniidae , which includes all extant sea turtles except the leatherback sea turtle . The subspecific classification of the loggerhead sea turtle is debated , but most authors consider it a single polymorphic species . Molecular genetics has confirmed hybridization of the loggerhead sea turtle with the Kemp 's ridley sea turtle , hawksbill sea turtle , and green sea turtles . The extent of natural hybridization is not yet determined ; however , second - generation hybrids have been reported , suggesting some hybrids are fertile . </P>
<P> Carl Linnaeus gave the loggerhead its first binomial name , Testudo caretta , in 1758 . Thirty - five other names emerged over the following two centuries , with the combination Caretta caretta first introduced in 1902 by Leonhard Stejneger . The English common name `` loggerhead '' refers to the animal 's large head . The loggerhead sea turtle belongs to the family Cheloniidae , which includes all extant sea turtles except the leatherback sea turtle . The subspecific classification of the loggerhead sea turtle is debated , but most authors consider it a single polymorphic species . Molecular genetics has confirmed hybridization of the loggerhead sea turtle with the Kemp 's ridley sea turtle , hawksbill sea turtle , and green sea turtles . The extent of natural hybridization is not yet determined ; however , second - generation hybrids have been reported , suggesting some hybrids are fertile . </P>
what is the classification of a loggerhead sea turtle
what is the classification of a loggerhead sea turtle
polymorphic
polymorphic