Is Hawkbill Sea Turtle's skin toxic ?

Xelioszzapporro

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Why so much interest in sea turtles?
Was wondering the same thing.

Mainly because they are turtles who live exclusively on sea all their life except when they want to lay their eggs.
Which too me is very interesting. And for some reason the Sea Turtles are more magnetic in appearance than land turtles.
Also I have only seen the Caretta Caretta and Chelonia Mydas species.....and that was only in Aquariums......
So the rest of the species is something that I never saw.......which is another reason why I am so interested.
 

ZEROPILOT

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Mainly because they are turtles who live exclusively on sea all their life except when they want to lay their eggs.
Which too me is very interesting. And for some reason the Sea Turtles are more magnetic in appearance than land turtles.
Also I have only seen the Caretta Caretta and Chelonia Mydas species.....and that was only in Aquariums......
So the rest of the species is something that I never saw.......which is another reason why I am so interested.
I've seen a few sea turtles while I was out fishing.
I see them mostly on the Gulf coast of Florida.
It's always nice to see one
 

Xelioszzapporro

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I have no idea what species I've seen out there.

I will help you by presenting you the 6 species with pictures. So it will be easier to recognize them.





This is the Hawksbill which is the one I am referring to in this thread if it's skin is toxic or not

hawksbill_sea_turtle.jpg


This is the Leatherback. It's the biggest of all turtles.



leatherback-sea-turtle_Getty-Images_600x300.jpg


This is the Caretta Caretta



Loggerhead_Sea_turtle.jpg



This is the Lepidochelys Kempii

kemps-ridley.jpg



This is the Lepidochelus Olivacea. Looks similar to the above species but has 2 main differences.


olive_ridley_sea_turtle_1-1.jpg



And this is the most common Sea Turtle the Green Sea Turtle or Chelonia Mydas

IMG_3463.jpg
 

jeff kushner

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LOL....Sea turtles ARE supercool, kind of like that girl I couldn't have.....I don't know if I like them b/c I can't have one to play with or because as you say, I am drawn to their grace in the water, peaceful existence and general calm about them.


I have looked for them when snorkeling or diving down in the Caribbean but was never fortunate enough to see one. Till we went to Belize a few years ago but there, we were in a skiff when we saw him headed out to the reef. We didn't see any on the reef once we got in the water though. Lots of sharks though! Maybe the turtles avoided them?
BB.jpg
 

Maddoggy

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I see them all the time when I am offshore fishing.And during laying seasons it's not unusual to see a dozen or so nests along a stretch of beach while cruising along in my boat.I had accidentally caught a juvenile loggerhead in my castnet while catching baitfish at Sebastian's inlet.I unwrapped the net and placed him back in the inlet. He didn't try to bite and was actually quite caim considering the ordeal I put him through. I put him back in the inlet and he kept hanging around so I had to leave and find new place to castnet.
 

jeff kushner

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That must have been very cool M!

One of my Bucket list items is to hold a sea turtle.....

Me thinks the mods were concerned for a different reason.............and honestly, it feels awful good knowing they & others are so on top of that!
 

Maddoggy

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That must have been very cool M!

One of my Bucket list items is to hold a sea turtle.....

Me thinks the mods were concerned for a different reason.............and honestly, it feels awful good knowing they & others are so on top of that!
I think you are right.Sea turtles around here get treated fairly well . Not so well in some foreign countries
 

TammyJ

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Why do you want to know if the skin is toxic?
 

Xelioszzapporro

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Why do you want to know if the skin is toxic?

Because I want to learn things about Sea Turtles in general. It's that simple. And for example a lot of animals and humans eat Olive Ridley Sea Turtles or Loggerheads but I haven't heard of them eating a Hawksbill

Do you know whether Hawksbill skin is toxic or not ???
 

Maggie3fan

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It IS TOXIC! It's very deadly apparently, so that no human will ever touch one!
I went to Texass to visit a TFO friend near Brownsville some years ago... One day we went North along the coast outside of South Padre Island and went into a sea turtle rescue. It was awesome! sea turtles in big round tanks within reach...except for the sign that read "DO NOT TOUCH"...so without a word when no one was around I reached in for the turtle and his wife blocked me from view...do not do this at home....I reached out with both hands and rubbed that turtle all over and he rubbed back against my hand. Holy sh*t!!! It was a Hawksbill and I rubbed him good...wiped my hands on my Calvin Klein's and walked away...Maybe I absorbed some toxin and became ornery...lol
I am not an expert but that was my personal experience...haha
 

Maggie3fan

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Wow, like looking in the mirror!


"DO NOT TOUCH"= "Sure, have at it"
I used to think that when I got "old" and matured that the habit of breaking rules like that would go away. HAHAHA. Just small rules means I personally don't have to obey. But all I did was get old, I have never matured. I wanted to touch him so I did...I so liked the way Mike's wife moved over and blocked me from view, her back to me as she watched out...tells me she hasn't been a goody goody all her life. Anyway, his skin and carapace like felt like the back of a Manta Ray. Soft but not really slimy. I rubbed him and he pushed back against my hand and wiggled...Simply the coolest, and if I had followed the rules, I wouldn't have had that experience...and the sign read that their skin can be toxic to humans...well, what's that tell ya??????????
 

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