Hawksbill Sea Turtle

Photo: Kevin Bryant · CC BY-NC-SA

Hawksbill turtles are regulars on the Playa Brava reef, exploiting the sponge-rich coral heads that provide the majority of their diet. Unlike green turtles, hawksbills have a narrow pointed beak that lets them extract sponges from crevices inaccessible to other species, making sponge-dominated Caribbean reefs critical habitat. The nesting beaches of Tayrona support a small but significant nesting population, so divers in the water are often observing locally-born individuals.