Hawksbill Sea Turtle

Hawksbill Sea Turtle
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

Introduction
The Hawksbill Sea Turtle is a marine turtle with a small head with an oval shell which is elongated towards its back having overlapping scutes and a small head. Its beak is like that of a hawk. It also has flippers having two claws. The species is generally brown in color and additional splashes of orange, red and even yellow colors on its carapace. A mature hawksbill turtle is averagely three feet in length and about three hundred pounds in weight. It has scale over its head and its carapace which makes it distinct. The hawksbill sea turtle feeds primarily on the sea sponges. It is also part and parcel of the coral reef population found in sea beaches. Its habitat is frequently the rocky areas, lagoons, coral reefs and even the shallow coastal regions. They are usually seen in as deep as 65 feet sea water. The female hawksbill usually nests in sea vegetation at the surface of the sea, especially at night hours. The species nest is between 140 to 200 eggs and their incubation period is averagely 60 days. Its sexual maturity age in Caribbean countries is estimated to be 20 years or even more. The decline in the population of the hawksbill turtle is due to the human over-exploitation for its tortoiseshell in an illegal trade. The decline is also attributed to the degradation of its nesting habitat due to the continuing coastal region development and armoring of the beach as well as disorientation by the lighting of the beachfront of its hatchlings.

Predators, degradation of the habit forage as well as marine pollution among other factors have negatively impacted on the species leading to further decline in their numbers (Liles et al., 2015).
lefttop
Speciation
The scientific name for the hawksbill sea turtle is Eretmochelys imbricate. It has two pairs of the prefrontal scales. It is identifiable due to its small and narrow head and with a beak like that of the birds. Due to evolution the size and appearance of the marine turtles have dramatically changed over time. The ancestral species of hawksbill sea turtle like the Archelon (Toxochelid) is one amongst the largest turtle that ever lived in a marine habitat. The Archelon was dark to black in color. Another ancestral turtle of the species of hawksbill is the protostegid which was brown-pale and large but not as Archelon. The earliest species of hawksbill sea turtle were carnivorous while the modern ones are adapting to become herbivores. The ancestral turtle with full shell had a larger head and wider ribs. Examples of the earliest form or species of hawksbill turtle include Eunotosaurus. The modern species of hawksbill sea turtle include Pappochelys which is known for having gastralia which are the ribs of the belly. Other modern species of hawksbill turtle are the endangered Green turtle of the sea, the Loggerhead and the Kemp’s Ridley all with very similar phylogenic features and characteristics. All the modern species of hawksbill turtle and its relatives are smaller in sizes and more adapted to diving than the older one. These adaptations are suited to help them reach and catch the preys like the jellyfish and the salps which reside deep in the sea water.
The earliest species and ancestor of the hawksbill sea turtle and which has become extinct is the Desmatochelys Padilla. It is estimated that the extinct species lived over 120 million years ago. Its fossils were found in Colombia. It was 6.5 feet long and weighed 2200kg. Hawksbills have evolved markedly to have unique mouth shape like the beaks of the birds as an adaptation for them to eat sea sponges by easily biting it. The upper jaw of the hawksbill hangs over the lower jaw as an adaptation to feeding in food in the deep corners and those hard to reach by other species. The claws are modified into two each with the flipper, males having longer and stronger than those of the females. The scientist theorizes this adaptation as a means for the males to protect the females (Gaos et al., 2010).
Population Ecology
Adaptation Traits
The hawksbills have a beak like that of the hawk crucial for biting sponges in deep crevices where its competitors cannot easily reach even as food diminish in the sea. The ancestral turtle used to be carnivorous, but the modern ones are adapting to become herbivores but more especially omnivores since they at times feed on jellyfish and mollusks. Its small and narrow head is adapted for diving into the sea against its predators like shore crabs and birds and to find food. The carapace also acts as its fortress of protection and also for nesting purposes. They also mate and nest in a secluded lagoon to increase the chances of survival for its progeny (Liles et al., 2015). The strong claws with the flipper in male hawksbills are for the defense of the females and young ones. The population of the hawksbills is declining every ten years. The number of the nesting female hawksbills is reducing each year.
Community Ecology
Environmental factors that have contributed to the development of specific traits among the hawksbills like the hawk’s beak include degradation of the environment through such means as pollution and climate change. These two factors have led to the diminished foods in the ecosystem leading to stiff competition. The hawksbills, therefore, needed to develop these phylogenic features to obtain food in habitats and niches that is hard for other competitors to reach. Pollution includes discharge of industrial wastes which kills the aquatic lives at the shore. Changes in climate condition include high temperatures which are unfavorable for mating and reproduction process. Other environmental factors include predators which make them develop differently as a means of camouflaging against predators and which is also essential in hunting for jellyfish. Salinity in the sea also has influenced its vital process of osmoregulation. The limiting resources are mainly foods which have changed these species from carnivorous to omnivorous and at times herbivorous.
The turtle faces a competition for foods like jellyfish from other aquatic animals like the sharks, tunas, and salmons among other predators. Some other reptiles also feed on the sponges. The hawksbills play the major role in the food web and food chain to maintain the balance in the ecosystem. The hawksbills co-evolved with Leatherhead and loggerhead and are its competitors too.
Reasons for Extinction and Challenges to Survival
Reasons for the extinction of white turtle is due to its human hunting and illegal trade for its tortoiseshell used to make ornaments. Some communities kill it for food. Their eggs are killed by predators such as snakes and other shore reptiles. Pollution and destruction of its habitat through human activities have also endangered the species (Garcon et al., 2010).
References
Gaos, A. R., Abreu-Grobois, F. A., Alfaro-Shigueto, J., Amorocho, D., Arauz, R., Baquero, A., … & Liles, M. (2010). Signs of hope in the eastern Pacific: international collaboration reveals encouraging status for a severely depleted population of hawksbill turtles Eretmochelys imbricata. Oryx, 44(4), 595-601.
Garcon, J. S., Grech, A., Moloney, J., & Hamann, M. (2010). Relative Exposure Index: an important factor in sea turtle nesting distribution. Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems, 20(2), 140-149.
Liles, M. J., Peterson, M. J., Seminoff, J. A., Altamirano, E., Henríquez, A. V., Gaos, A. R., … & Peterson, T. R. (2015). One size does not fit all: importance of adjusting conservation practices for endangered hawksbill turtles to address local nesting habitat needs in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Biological Conservation, 184, 405-413.