It’s A Bird! It’s A Turtle! No, It’s A Hawksbill Sea Turtle!

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Tyler Souza

During our dive trip to Cozumel, Mexico, I had a few organisms on my mental list of things I wanted to see. One of the organisms on the top of that list was a sea turtle. I have always had an interest in them, but that’s probably because of how they’re portrayed as the laid-back animal in cinema or maybe just the fact that they’re so dang cute. I will always remember the first time I saw one in the wild leisurely munching on bits of sponge as I tried desperately to stay beside it while fighting against the pulling currents. The turtles just made it look so easy.
Image result for finding nemo turtle


Image result for hawksbill sea turtleAfter studying more on sea turtles in class we were introduced to the Hawksbill Sea Turtle, or Eretmochelys imbricate. This specific turtle really stuck out to me because it was a combination of a cute sea turtle with a cool bird’s beak, hence where it get’s its name. These turtles are listed as critically endangered under the IUCN Red List Status (1). Not particularly large compared with other sea turtles, hawksbills grow up to about 45 inches in shell length and 150 pounds in weight (2). While young, their carapace, or upper shell, is heart-shaped, and as they mature it elongates. A further distinctive feature is a pair of claws adorning each flipper. Male hawksbills have longer claws, thicker tails, and somewhat brighter coloring than females.

Hawksbill turtles are found throughout the tropical waters of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. They avoid deep waters, preferring coastlines where sponges are abundant and sandy nesting sites are within reach. They are omnivorous, and they will also eat mollusks, marine algae, crustaceans, sea urchins, fish, and jellyfish. Their hard shells protect them from many predators, but they still fall prey to large fish, sharks, crocodiles, octopuses, and their number one predator: humans.


Like many sea turtles, hawksbills are a critically endangered species due mostly to human impact. Hawksbill eggs are still eaten around the world despite the turtle’s international protected status, and they are often killed for their flesh and their stunning shells. Their shell is covered in colorful gold, brown, orange, and reddish streaked overlapping scales which can be polished and carved to make jewelry, sunglasses, trinkets, and other embellishments. Commonly referred to as tortoiseshell, or ‘bekko' by the Japanese, hawksbill shell has been highly sought after for centuries. It’s estimated that in the last 100 years global hawksbill populations have declined by a staggering 90% (3). You can learn more about the turtle shell trade here.
Only a small handful of marine animals specialize in eating sponges, making the role of the hawksbill on coral reefs an important one. By consuming a diet that consists largely of certain species of sponges, they play an important role in the reef ecosystem by keeping sponge populations in check, which allows other species to occupy space on the reef and increases biodiversity. Without hawksbills, sponges can overgrow and crowd out vital reef-building corals. It’s estimated that one turtle can consume over 1,000 pounds of sponges per year (4). Because sea turtles lay their eggs on beaches and mangrove islands, hawksbills are also important for the health of coastal ecosystems. The eggs they deposit in the sand provide nutrients to the beach and surrounding vegetation and are also consumed by natural predators which move nutrients into the system through the passing of fecal material. There are even species of predators that have evolved into knowing when exactly the turtles will lay their eggs and have created migrating patterns to feed during those times.

References
1.      “SWOT Report, Vol. III.” SWOT, Conservation International, 2 Feb. 2017, www.seaturtlestatus.org/report/swot-volume-3
2.      “Hawksbills.” SEE Turtles, www.seeturtles.org/hawksbill-turtles/
3.      “Information About Sea Turtles: Hawksbill Sea Turtle – Sea Turtle Conservancy.” Sea Turtle Conservancy, 1 Jan. 2017, www.conserveturtles.org/information-about-sea-turtles-hawksbill-sea-turtle/
4.      “Hawksbill Sea Turtle.” National Geographic, National Geographic, 11 Apr. 2010, www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/reptiles/h/hawksbill-sea-turtle/
Picture References
https://www.activewild.com/hawksbill-sea-turtle-facts/
https://www.seaturtlecamp.com/hawksbill-sea-turtle/






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