Photo: Christian Gloor from Wakatobi Dive Resort, Indonesia · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Description
- 📏 up to 90 cm
- 🌊 coral reefs, sponges, caves
- 🛡️ Critically Endangered (IUCN)
The hawksbill turtle (ʻea) has a pointed, hawk-like beak and a shell whose scales overlap like roof tiles, hence its name. It feeds mostly on sponges, which it seeks out in the crevices of the reef. It is highly threatened and strictly protected.
Did you know?
Once hunted for its shell (used to make objects and jewellery), it is now protected: it must never be touched.
Source: French Polynesia regulations
Tahitian names: common usage in reo Tahiti. French name: Tortue à écailles.
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