This hawksbill turtle shell was donated to the Herbert’s natural history collection in the 1980s. It's on display in What’s in Store until July. Nothing to Declare is an exhibition of the items seized by HM Revenue and Customs. There is still an appetite for the rare and the fashionable in wild animal souvenirs. When the items are found they are confiscated but by then the damage is done.

Why should we care?

Under the Convention for International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). It has been illegal to capture and trade in products made from the hawksbill for thirty years. This has not stopped the hawksbill becoming a critically endangered species. In some countries there is still a continuing demand for the shell and other by-products including leather and oil. Critical level means if urgent actions are not taken soon numbers in the wild will not be able to recover enough to avoid extinction in just a few decades. The scale of the problem is significant. There are 5000 animal species that need protection under the CITES agreement. 

What are the threats?

Humans are the greatest threat to the hawksbill. The growing commercial and recreational use causes harm to the beach nesting sites. More damage is done by unwary travelers camping, making fires, litter and other refuse. The turtles get tangled in fishing nets and the main feeding grounds are being damaged.

The shells are the primary source of tortoiseshell. Though the name is in common use the term is incorrect since hawksbills are turtles rather than tortoises.

Description

The turtles have a tapered head with a hawk like beak. A further distinctive feature is a pair of claws adorning each flipper. The shell, also called a carapace, is made up of a series of thick overlapping scales or scutes.

Life cycle

These turtles are highly complex, specialized marine reptiles. They can live 70 to 80 years. Like other sea turtles they are known to make significant migrations from feeding sites to nesting sites.

They are relatively small by comparison to other turtle species. The Adults grow to approx 1metre in length and weigh between 45 to 49 kilograms.

The hawksbill matures late and more research needs to be done about their life cycle. It is believed that sometime between 20 to 40 years old they may start to mate. The mating season is April to November.

Habitat

The hawksbill turtle is found throughout in the Atlantic, the Pacific and Indian oceans. During their life cycle they require a diversity of environments, nesting beaches, open oceans, coral reefs and coastal waters.

They are essential to the ecology of the coral reefs, which are the main foraging grounds for juveniles and adults. They feed on sea sponges, some of which can be highly toxic to other animals, but they also eat molluscs, crustaceans, fish, and jellyfish.

The trade in tortoiseshell needs to be halted now so that hawksbills and other endangered species don't just become curiosities that only exist in museums.