Ecology

Organisms

Organisms listed below... Further descriptions of organisms are on the "Organisms" page. Click the link above to see or find it in the navigation bar...

There are many organisms that share the same ecosystem as the Hawksbill Sea Turtle. The Hawksbill Sea Turtle stays close to shore and out of deep waters as much as possible. Here are 10 diverse species that are in the same ecosystem as the Hawksbill Sea Turtle. In many ecosystems especially this ecosystem there is a lot of commensalism, where there is a symbiotic relationships between species that benefit each other. Species in this ecosystem need each other to thrive; taking one species out can be detrimental to the whole ecosystem. There are many opisthokonta species in this ecosystem; fungi, animals, and choanoflagellates. There are also many herbaceous which are plants that do not have woody tissue, like seagrass. In this ecosystem, there are also many actinopterygii or ray-finned fish, like the yellow stingray. There are many pathogens that get spread in the ocean; pathogens are infectious agents that cause diseases.

Endangered - This means that there are low numbers of species, and it is at risk of extinction.

Threatened - This means that the population is declining and at risk of becoming endangered.

Near Threatened - This means if the population continues to decline, the species is at risk of becoming threatened.

Boulder Star Coral - Orbicella Annularis

This coral is listed as an endangered species.

Kingdom - Animalia

Phylum - Cnidaria

Class - Anthozoa

Order - Scleractinia

Family - Merulinidea

Genus - Orbicella

Species - Annularis

Turtle Grass - Thalassia Hemprichii

This seagrass is not listed on the endangered or threatened species list.

Kingdom - Plantae

Phylum - Tracheophyta

Class - Liliopsida

Order - Alismatales

Family - Hydrocharitaceae

Genus - Thalassia

Species - Hemprichii

Sargassum Seaweed - Sargassum Natans

Sargassum is not listed on the endangered or threatened species list.

Kingdom - Chromista

Phylum - Heterokontonnyta

Class - Phaeophyceae

Order - Fucales

Family - Sargassaceae

Genus - Sargassum

Species - Natans

Atlantic Blue Crad - Callinectes Sapidus

This crab is not listed on the endangered or threatened species list.

Kingdom - Animalia

Phylum - Arthropoda

Class - Malacostraca

Order - Decapoda

Family - Portunidae

Genus - Callinectes

Species - Sapidus

Yellow Stingray - Urobatis Jamaicensis

This stingray is not listed on the endangered or threatened species list.

Kingdom - Animalia

Phylum - Craniata

Class - Chondrichthyes

Order - Myliobatiformes

Family - Urobophidae

Genus - Urobatis

Species - Jamaicensis

Moon Jellyfish - Aurelia Aurita

This jellyfish is not listed on the endangered or threatened species list.

Kingdom - Animalia

Phylum - Cnidaria

Class - Scyphozoa

Order - Semaeostomeae

Family - Ulmaridae

Genus - Aurelia

Species - Aurita

American Manatee - Haematopus Palliatus

This manatee is listed as threatened species.

Kingdom - Animalia

Phylum - Chordata

Class - Aves

Order - Charadriiformes

Family - Haematopodidae

Genus - Haematopus

Species - Palliatus

Bull Shark - Carcharhinus Leucas

This shark is listed as a near-threatened species.

Kingdom - Animalia

Phylum - Chordata

Class - Chondrichthyes

Order - Carcharhuniformes

Family - Carcharhinidae

Genus - Carcharhinus

Species - Leucas

American Oystercatcher - Haematopus Palliatus

This bird is not listed on the endangered or threatened species list.

Kingdom - Animalia

Phylum - Chordata

Class - Aves

Order - Charadriiformes

Family - Haematopodidae

Genus - Haematopus

Species - Palliatus

Vibrio Illness - Vibrio Vulnificus

This illness/infection is rather rare to get.

Kingdom - Bacteria

Phylum - Pseudomonadota

Class - Gammaproteobacteria

Order - Vibriunales

Family - Vibrion Aceae

Genus -Vibrio

Species - V. Vulnificus

Hawksbill Sea Turtle Niche

This turtle's Niche or role in its ecosystem is that its inhabitant waters by the shore where coral reefs forage for food in coral helping to maintain the health of coral reefs (Hawksbill Sea Turtle - Facts, Diet, Habitat & Pictures on Animalia.bio, 2023). Coral reefs are made up of reef-building corals or harder corals; it builds upon themselves for years and forms a large ecosystem for many other species in the ocean. Coral reefs are foundation species; this means that it forms a large structure that is part of a habitat and serves other species in the ecosystem.

The World Wildlife Foundation states that "Hawksbills help maintain the health of coral reefs. As they remove prey such as sponges from the reef's surface, they provide better access for reef fish to feed"(Hawksbill Turtle | Sea Turtles | Species | WWF, 2023).

Coral reefs and the Hawksbill Sea Turtle are located in the photic zone or the sunlight zone close to shore. Corals require lots of sunlight growing best in these conditions. The hawksbill likes to eat sea sponges; sea sponges usually hang out in small crakes and cravats of coral reefs. The hawksbill's beak is shaped the way it is to get sea sponges and food out of small spaces in coral reefs (NOAA Fisheries, 2012). Mutualism between coral reefs and the Hawksbill Sea Turtle acer; this is when 2 species have a symbiotic relationship that both of them benefit from. The coral benefits due to the turtle controlling the population of sea sponges. The hawksbill benefits from eating the sea sponges for dinner. They remove and eat sea sponges off of coral giving reef fish access to feed off of coral reefs. If the hawksbill did not eat sea sponges, there would be an overpopulation of sponges damaging the reef and limiting reef feed access to feed. Hawksbill sea turtles are important to maintaining coral reef health.

3 Interactions with other Organisms

Prey and Hawksbills Nests

Many animals like dogs, raccoons, and rats, like to eat turtle eggs or dig in nests due to the smell. Some people even disturb the nest due to their curiosity and kill the young; eggs need to be under the warm sand to incubate and hatch messing with the nest can hurt the young(NOAA Fisheries, 2012). There are ways to properly handle a sea turtle nest, but many people do not know what they are doing. The publics' pets like dogs and other animals end up smelling out the nests, eating eggs, and hurting the young in the nest. This usually results in the eggs not hatching.

Seaweed/ Seagrass and Hawksbill

Any type of seaweed provides the hawksbill adult or young with protection and a hiding place (NOAA Fisheries, 2012). The same goes with seagrass, any type provides the turtle with protection from prey species like sharks. Hawksbill needs to surface to breathe so they hide within seaweed clumps to protect themselves. Young hatchings cannot dive deep and often flow within seaweed for protection until they get more mature. Seagrass provides protection when the turtles are under the water looking for food.

Sharks and Hawksbill

Many species of sharks eat species of sea turtles, it is a tasty snack for them (Bull Shark, 2014). Sea turtles due have their hard shell for protection; the shell can only withstand so much pressure before it breaks, and some sharks can get through this. The turtle also has weak points like the head and neck being one; the head has protection not as much as the body. The turtle limbs like the flippers are also a weak point for the turtle. This is why the turtle likes to hide in seagrass and seaweed. Some sharks like the bull shark are aggressive and go for the weak points.

Video of Hawksbill and Tiger Shark

References -

NOAA Fisheries. (2012). Hawksbill Turtle | NOAA Fisheries. Noaa.gov. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/species/hawksbill-turtle

‌Bennett, L. (2019, September 9). Sea Turtles. Smithsonian Ocean. https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/reptiles/sea-turtles

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. (2019). IUCN Red List of Threatened Species; Name. https://www.iucnredlist.org/resources/grid

A-Z-Animals.com. (2018). A to Z Index of Animals. A-z-Animals.com. https://a-z-animals.com/animals/

Animalia - Online Animals Encyclopedia. (2023). Animalia.bio. https://animalia.bio/

Ch. 15 Key Terms - Concepts of Biology | OpenStax. (2013). Openstax.org. https://openstax.org/books/concepts-biology/pages/15-key-terms

Hawksbill Turtle | Sea Turtles | Species | WWF. (2023). World Wildlife Fund. https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/hawksbill-turtle#:~:text=Why%20They%20Matter

Hawksbill Sea Turtle - Facts, Diet, Habitat & Pictures on Animalia.bio. (2023). Animalia.bio. https://animalia.bio/hawksbill-sea-turtle#:~:text=Population%20number

Bull Shark. (2014, March 1). Animals. https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/facts/bull-shark#:~:text=Bull%20sharks%20will%20eat%20almost

Page updated

Report abuse