Beach Thick-knee vs Leatherback Sea Turtle

Esacus magnirostris compared with Dermochelys coriacea

Key Differences

• Beach Thick-knee is Near Threatened while Leatherback Sea Turtle is Vulnerable.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Beach Thick-knee	Leatherback Sea Turtle
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Reptilia (Reptiles)
Order	Charadriiformes (Charadriiformes)	Testudines (Turtles & Tortoises)
Family	Burhinidae	Cheloniidae (Sea Turtles)
Genus	Esacus	Chelonia (Green Sea Turtles)
Species	Esacus magnirostris	Dermochelys coriacea

Evolutionary Relationship

Beach Thick-knee and Leatherback Sea Turtle share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

Conservation Status

Beach Thick-knee

NT — Near Threatened

Leatherback Sea Turtle

VU — Vulnerable

Population: ~35.0K

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Beach Thick-knee	Leatherback Sea Turtle
Diet	—	Carnivore
Average Lifespan	—	50 years
Average Length	—	2.0 m
Average Weight	—	500.0 kg

Habitat & Geographic Range

Beach Thick-knee

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Found in Norway. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Leatherback Sea Turtle

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 5 distinct biome types spanning the Australasia and Indomalayan and Neotropic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Costa Rica, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Trinidad and Tobago. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Beach Thick-knee

The Beach Thick-knee (Esacus magnirostris) is a species in the genus Esacus. It is currently classified as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Leatherback Sea Turtle

The leatherback is the largest living turtle and the fourth-heaviest reptile. Unlike other turtles, it has a soft, leathery shell.