Among the many turtle projects in which we participate, one of my favorite is the Massachusetts spotted turtle survey. The spotted turtle (Clemmys guttata) is a beautiful, small, freshwater turtle species from the eastern United States. It prefers wet meadows, swamps, and other shallow wetlands. It is active from April through October, and hibernates underwater in the winter. The most active time of year is April through June, which is their breeding and nesting season.

Spotted turtles are relatively rare in Massachusetts, and for many years they were listed as a Species of Special Concern, and were legally protected. Several years ago, though, they were removed from the list of protected species, as some scientists felt that they may be more common than previously thought. As with all conservation issues, there are people on both sides of this argument, and many turtle biologists are still quite concerned that spotted turtles are becoming more rare.

To try to address this debate, the state of Massachusetts has started a spotted turtle survery program, where volunteers are assigned to visit known spotted turtle sites each year, and count the number of turtles that are found. Each turtle is numbered by a series of small notches on their shell so that they can be identified in the future.

The attached images were taken by NEAQ biologist Adam Kennedy and me at one of our assigned study sites. It shows a beautiful adult male spotted turtle on a beautiful New England spring day. On this day, we found three turtles, including one female that I had marked last year.

If you see a spotted turtle in the wild, please report it to the Masssachusetts Natural Heritage program so that it's location can be recorded. If it is on a road, please try to safely help it across (think about your own safety before you do this!). Sadly, we have already seen three spotted turtles killed by cars this year at one of our study sites. Although these turtles have been removed from the protected list, it is still illegal to keep them as pets in Massachusetts, so please leave them where they belong.

Thanks for helping turtles!

-Dr. Innis

subscribe

Labels: freshwater turtles, spotted turtle

This post is not about sea turtles, but it's about northern red-bellied cooters. This is a type of freshwater turtle that lives in the Eastern United States, including New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia. Interestingly, there is also a population of this species that lives in Plymouth County, MA, several hundred miles away from any other known populations.

It used to be thought that Plymouth red-bellied turtles were a separate species, but DNA testing has shown that they are the same species as those that live in other states. However, the Plymouth population is unique enough to be considered as a genetically distinct population. In the 1980's the numbers of red-bellied turtles in Massachusetts was very low, only about 200 - 300 animals, so they were placed on the United States and Massachusetts Endangered Species List.


In order to increase the number of red-bellied turtles in Massachusetts, scientists started a project called a "head-start" program. In the wild, many turtle eggs are eaten by animals such as raccoons and skunks. To prevent this, scientists began putting wire cages over red-bellied turtle nests so that the eggs would not be eaten. When the baby turtles hatch in the fall, some of them are brought to institutions like the New England Aquarium, and they are raised over the winter.


This way, the turtles grow large enough so that they will not be eaten by fish, crows, frogs, etc. Over the past twenty years, the head-start program has increased the population of red-bellied turtles in Massachusetts up to 2000 - 3000 animals! In fact, some head-started turtles have now become old enough to lay eggs of their own.





We thank the many individuals and organizations that have helped red-bellied turtles over the years, especially Terry Graham, Tom French, and Dave Taylor, and the late Allison Haskell. We will keep you updated on the progress of these babies, which will be released to the wild later this spring.

- Dr. Innis

subscribe

Labels: Bill Murphy, freshwater turtles, head start, Red-bellied cooters

In addition to our sea turtle work, we also work with a number of conservation programs for native freshwater turtles. This is "Skip," a Blanding's turtle. Blanding's turtles are found in marshy wetlands in the northern United States. Here in New England, Blanding's turtles are very rare. In Massachusetts, they are found at only a few locations, with relatively few turtles at each location. In most areas, Blanding's turtle populations are declining due to habitat destruction, road mortality (females are often hit by cars when looking for nest sites in spring), and illegal collection as pets.

Because of this, Blanding's turtles are protected under Massachusetts law as a Threatened Species. In 2007, Joe Masi, one of the aquarists here at the Aquarium, found a Blanding's turtle during a field survey of a swamp in southeastern Massachusetts. This location was not previously known to have a population of Blanding's turtles and this initial discovery has led to more intensive surveys of the site. So far no additional specimens have been found.

Skip came to the New England Aquarium recently after he was confiscated by state officials. He was being illegally kept as a pet. Unfortunately, he cannot be released back to the wild because we don't know exactly where he came from and he was exposed to a non-native turtle in captivity. Turtles have genetic adaptations to certain geographic areas, and they have a well developed home range. Thus, releasing a turtle of unknown geographic origin carries the risk of introducing genes that are not adapted to that location. Often turtles that are released outside of their home range keep wandering indefinitely, and never join a population. Also, exposure of native turtles to non-native turtles carries the risk of introducing disease into the native population. All of these factors could be devastating for local species.

So ... Skip will live with us at the Aquarium and serve as an ambassador to educate the public about turtle conservation. Please remember that many of our native turtles are threatened or endangered, and be sure not to take such animals out of the wild.

Thanks!!

-Dr. Innis

subscribe

Labels: Blanding's, freshwater turtles, Skip