Hawksbill sea turtle

Photo: Pedro D. Vernet P. · CC BY-NC

Hawksbill turtles are keystone predators of sponge-dominated reef ecosystems, using their narrow pointed beaks to extract sponges from crevices that other reef animals cannot access. By selectively grazing on fast-growing sponge species, they prevent sponges from overgrowing and smothering slow-growing corals. Critically endangered globally, Tobago waters hold one of the Caribbean's most reliable resident populations.