Trouble in Paradise

The Hawksbill Sea Turtle - Eretmochelys imbricata

Alexa Easley

Millions of years ago 4 different families of Sea Turtles roamed the earth. However, today only two families remain with limited species in each. The Hawksbill turtle is one of only 6 species left in the Cheloniidae Family of sea turtles. The Hawksbill turtle is a small to medium sized sea turtle and gets its name from it’s distinct head shape. The hawksbill’s elongated head tapers to a point giving it a beak-like mouth similar to that of a Hawk’s. Hawksbills rely on thriving coral reefs for sustainability. Mature Hawksbills feed primarily on sponges found in coral reefs along with algae and various other ocean life. They also use coral reefs for protection against predators and for resting places day and night. Apart from living in coral reefs, female hawksbill turtles return back to the beach they were born, natal beaches, to lay their nests. Their nests are usually laid in beach vegetation areas and incubate for 2 months. Although adult females can lay up to 200 eggs in one nesting season, less than 10% of her eggs will actually hatch. Dogs, seabirds, raccoons, ghost crabs, and humans make up the majority of threats to Hawksbill eggs. Once hatched and mature, the main predator for Hawksbill turtles are sharks; whales have also been known to prey on hawksbill turtles.

Hawksbill sea turtle in coral reef habitat 

Hawksbill Sea turtles are circumtropical, meaning they’re distributed throughout the tropical regions, usually occurring from 30° N to 30° S latitude in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans. Hawkbills have historically been seen in large numbers throughout the Caribbean Sea, the western Atlantic Ocean, and the Gulf of Mexico, however in the last few decades these numbers have dramatically declined. Hawksbill nesting is scarce and widely spread out, putting the species in even more danger. Panama was once the largest nesting site out of hundreds for hawksbills and is now just one small site out of 83 remaining nesting sites around the world. In the United States, hawsbills nest on a few scattered beaches in Hawaii and the southern tip of Florida.  Just as they always have, Hawksbill Sea turtle still remain in tropical regions worldwide, however their population is quickly diminishing and it is becoming harder and harder for them to find nesting sites, further stripping away their ability to reproduce.

Hawksbill Turtles can be found in the regions colored in red

The Hawksbill Sea turtle has been listed as an endangered species since June 2^nd 1970. Originally it was listed as endangered in certain areas however currently it is listed as endangered wherever it is found.

Hawksbill Sea turtles were once abundant throughout the world however due to large numbers of turtles and turtle eggs being removed from their habitat and killed for their meat, skin, and shells they are classified as endangered species. The main threats to the Hawksbill right now are mainly concentrated around their nesting environments. The top five primary threats to Hawksbill turtles (in order of priority) are: direct take of eggs, direct take of turtles, increased human presence, costal construction, nest predation, and beach erosion. These causes slightly vary from beach to beach because a lot of different variables go into each threat; these are the most prominent at each nesting site. Apart from nesting site disturbances, Hawksbills are also threatened in marine environments due to reef (habitat) degradation and direct take of turtles from the ocean.

The goal of the recovery plan is to delist the species as endangered. In order to do so, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has compiled a list of recovery criteria that needs to be met as well as a list of actions needed to meet the criteria. According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service the first step is to identify all regional stock that uses U.S. waters to source beaches, each stock must then average 1,000 females annually over six years. All females estimated to nest annually at source beaches must be stable or increasing over a period of 25 years and areas must be maintained as healthy environments. All top priority tasks must be implemented and a management design plan must be created to maintain sustained populations of turtles. Finally, formal cooperative relationships with regional sea turtle management programs (such as South Pacific Regional Environment Program) must be ensured and international agreements must be met to protect shared stock.

In order to achieve recovery, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has generated a list of actions that must be met. First, we must stop the direct harvest of hawksbill turtles and eggs through education and law enforcement as well as reducing accidental harvest of turtles by commercial fisheries. Population size, status, and trends in long-term regular nesting sites must be determined through censuses. Also, countries outside of the United States, must support the conservation and biological management of hawksbills. Organizations must identify and protect the primary nesting and foraging areas for the species and eliminate the threats to these areas. Lastly, we must attempt to control non-native predators of eggs and hatchlings such as mongoose, feral cats, dogs, and pigs in the Hawaiian populations.

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And remember... FIN, NOGGIN, DUDE.