Hawksbill (Eretmochelys imbricata)

Hawksbill Turtle, Saba, Netherlands Antilles.
Photograph by Clark Anderson/Aquaimages.. Some rights reserved. (view image details)

Hawksbill | Eretmochelys imbricata photo

Hawksbill Turtle - close up of head
Photograph by Tom Doeppner. GNU Free Documentation License. (view image details)

HAWKSBILL FACTS

Description
The Hawksbill Turtle is critically endangered as it has been hunted for food, also for its attractive shell scales which are made into tortoiseshell ornaments and jewelry. The turtle is green or brown with reddish brown to black markings. The upper jaw projects forward making a beak-like snout. It has large flippers with two claws. The shell is serrated round the edge.

Size
1 m

Environment
tropical and warm temperate waters. Forage around coral reefs. Ledges and caves of reef systems provide shelter for resting.

Food
sponges, soft corals, sea grasses, molluscs

Breeding
Hawksbills nest on beaches in tropical oceans of the world, often sharing beaches with green turtles. Nests are typically placed under vegetation.

Range
found in tropical and warm temperate waters around the world. In Australia, found around the coast from New South Wales around the eastern and northern coast to Western Australia

Conservation Status
The conservation status in the 2004 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals is "critically endangered".

Classification

Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Testudines
Family:	Chelonidae
Genus:	Eretmochelys
Species:	imbricata
Common Name:	Hawksbill

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