Nesting occurs between July and October and courtship and mating begin somewhat earlier. Nesting in the Caribbean is principally nocturnal, although rare daytime nesting does occur. The entire process takes about 1 to 3 hours. Hawksbills nest on average 4.5 times a season and intervals of about 14 days. Hawksbills have a strong site fidelity to specific nesting beach areas and are capable of returning to the same place season after season.
Clutch size is correlated to female carapace length.
In Florida and the US Caribbean, clutch size is about 140 eggs. Eggs are about 40 mm in diameter and take about 60 days to hatch. Sex determination is likely temperature-dependent as in other sea turtles and many reptiles, but data is limited. Threats Hawksbills face most of the same threats that endanger all marine turtles . Although the full extent of the threat is not known, experts believe that the killing of hawksbills for bekko is a major problem.