SCUBA News 265
(ISSN 1476-8011)
August 2022

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SCUBA News (ISSN 1476-8011)
Issue 265 - August 2022
https://www.scubatravel.co.uk
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Welcome to SCUBA News. We're loving reading your comments and diving reviews - send them to news@scubatravel.co.uk.

What's New at SCUBA Travel?

	Terrific diving in Tanzania's Spice Islands From whale sharks to amazing reefs. READ MORE…
	Magnificent Maldives The south atolls of the Maldives still have world class diving - see for yourself with our video by Daniel French VIEW VIDEO…
	Red Sea's Marsa Alam Gateway to Elphinstone and the dugongs of Abu Dabab READ MORE…

Hawksbill turtle is creature of the month

Critically endangered, the hawksbill turtle lives throughout the world's tropical seas. In the last 100 years their numbers have declined by 80%. However, where countries protect them, and enforce the protection, populations recover.

When they leave their beach nest, most hawksbill hatchlings swim to the open sea. They stay here for up to 5 years, after which they migrate to their coral reef homes. Here you see them resting on ledges before swimming to the surface to breath.

Hawksbill turtles don't reach sexual maturity until between 14 and 35 years old. Females then return to the beach where they were born, to lay their eggs.

The temperature of the nest determines whether the baby turtles will be male or female. Higher temperatures mean more females. Turtles have evolved to nest when temperatures favour equal numbers of male and female hatchlings, but if this is already the coldest time on their beach, then birth ratios will shift to females if temperatures rise.

A female turtle lays eggs only every 2 to 5 years. In her breeding year though, she lays several clutches. Males may visit several rookeries, so a male-female imbalance might not be critical for the turtles.

Hawksbill turtles are endangered because of our actions like harvesting tortoiseshell, loss of habitat, light pollution and by-catch. As they grow slowly and take years to mature, populations have difficulty recovering.

They are called Hawksbill Turtles because of their pointed beak which they use to scrape the sponges they love to eat from the reef.

Hawksbill turtles are lovely to see underwater and can make a dive.

The largest turtle populations live in northwest Australia, the Solomon Islands and Indonesia. In the Atlantic, Mexico, Cuba and Barbados are Hawksbill turtle hotspots.

Phylum: Chordata > Class: Reptilia > Order: Testudines > Family: Cheloniidae > Genus: Eretmochelys > Species: Eretmochelys imbricata

References

J Gane, CT Downs, I Olivier & M Brown (2020) Nesting ecology and hatching success of the hawksbill turtle (2004-2014) on Cousine Island, Seychelles, African Journal of Marine Science, 42:1, 53-65, DOI: 10.2989/1814232X.2020.1727952
Boletin de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras - INVEMAR Print version ISSN 0122-9761
Bol. Invest. Mar. Cost. vol.49 supl.1 Santa Marta Dec. 2020 Epub Sep 03, 2021 https://doi.org/10.25268/bimc.invemar.2020.49.suplesp.1061
Conservation of Hawksbill Turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) in Indonesia, Lessons Learned and Future Challenges. Adela Hemelikova et al. 21 April 2021 https://doi.org/10.2991/absr.k.210420.010
Nakamura, M.F. et al. Lunar phases and hawksbill sea turtle nesting. J Ethol 37, 307-316 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10164-019-00604-7
Wang et al, Developing ultraviolet illumination of gillnets as a method to reduce sea turtle bycatch. Biol. Lett. 23 October 2013 vol. 9 no. 5 20130383
NOAA https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/hawksbill-turtle

Diving the Azores in small liveaboard group

Dive the best of the Azores - see turtles, sharks plus massive congregations of devil rays - in groups of no more than 8.

GET DEAL…

Diving news from around the World

	Can Sculptures Help Coral Reefs Bounce Back? Underwater sculptures are becoming a trend on degraded reefs. Are they helping the reef recover, or are they just a tourism draw?
	Orca surf for survival, as well as for play New research suggests orca surf to learn vital skills in the water.
	Scientists take a deep dive into how sharks use the ocean Twenty year study shows how sharks, rays, and skates - also known as elasmobranchs - use the ocean depths.
	Dugongs extinct in China New research shows that the Dugong - also known as the sea cow - is functionally extinct in China, with no sightings recorded since 2008. Dugongs are the only totally herbivorous marine mammals and inspired tales of Mermaids
	Sea life may downsize with ocean warming Marine microbes could shrink by up to 30% in the future due to climate change, affecting bigger organisms that eat them - meaning smaller fish and less food for other marine life (and humans).
	Rapid warming in the Gulf of Maine reverses 900 years of cooling Research suggests that greenhouse gas are not only likely causing surface temperature changes affecting the Gulf of Maine, but also causing changes in ocean circulation and driving out the fish.

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Photo credits: Tim Nicholson, Jill Studholme, Kristin Riser, Jianye Sui

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