Wildlifeof Borneo
Hawksbill Turtle
Turtles & Tortoises/cc-hawksbill-turtle-1.jpg)
Eretmochelys imbricata
Basic stats
Diet
Sponges, also soft corals, anemones and other reef invertebrates
Habitat
Coral reefs; nests on sandy beaches
Range
Circumtropical, associated with coral reef habitat including Sabah's reefs
Clutch size
About 100–160 eggs per clutch, several clutches per season
Incubation period
About 55–75 days, temperature-dependent
Size
Medium-large (carapace up to ~0.9m)
Weight
Up to ~80kg
Named for its narrow, hawk-like beak, well suited to reaching into reef crevices for its highly specialised diet of sponges, which are toxic or unpalatable to most other predators. Its overlapping, amber-and-brown patterned shell scutes are the source of traditional tortoiseshell.
More closely tied to coral reef habitat than the Green Turtle, and generally seen singly rather than in aggregations while foraging over reef structure around Sabah's dive sites.
Critically Endangered, historically the species most heavily targeted for the tortoiseshell trade; populations remain depressed across much of its range despite trade bans.
