Eretmochelys imbricata (Fitzinger, 1843)
Family: Cheloniidae Hawksbill Sea Turtle Status: Endemic Description: The hawksbill is a small to medium sized sea turtle measuring less than 91 cm CL (Ernst and Barbour 1989). The carapace is heart shaped in young individuals and becomes progressively strait sided as the turtle ages. The posterior edge of the carapace is serrated and there is a mid-dorsal keel posteriorly. Biology: This sea turtle is primarily an inhabitant of coral reefs and rocky bays though it occasionally is found in shallow coastal waters with mud bottoms little vegetation. Ernst and Barbour (1989) reported that the hawksbill sea turtle is omnivore that feeds heavily on urchins, sponges, coelenterates, and mollusks. Others (NMFS & USFS 1998) report that adults are specialist and feed only on sponges. Both suggest that juveniles are more herbivorous. The Hawksbill is considered critically endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) citing “extensive subpopulation declines in all major ocean basins over the last three Hawksbill generations as a result of over-exploitation of adult females and eggs at nesting beaches, degradation of nesting habitats, take of juveniles and adults in foraging areas, incidental mortality relating to marine fisheries, and degradation of marine habitats”. Moreover, an analysis of subpopulations, revealed “an 84 to 87% decline in number of mature females nesting annually over the last 3 Hawksbill generations” (http://www.iucnredlist.org/details/8005/0. accessed 13 Mar 2013) Distribution: The Hawksbill sea turtle occurs throughout the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans from as far north as Massachusetts and the British Isles and south as far as Australia (Ernst and Barbour 1989). There is a single recorded nesting event in the Mariana Islands from Guam in 1991 (NMFS & USFS 1998). There is a small foraging population that inhabits the waters around Guam, its status and relative abundance in the CNMI is unknown (NMFS & USFS 1998). Ernst C. H. and R.W. Barbour. 1989. Turtles of the World. Smithsonian Institute. 313 pp. NMFS & USFS. 1998c. Recovery Plan for U.S. Pacific Populations of the Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata). National Marine Fisheries Service, Silver Spring, MD. 95 pp. |