South American Turtle Can Talk
Turtles were first considered as a source of protein for many Amazonian local communities. These had never considered the fact that the animal could go extinct someday. Both scared and motivated by this reason, Camila Ferrera moved to Manaus in the Amazon to study and help saving the endangered Amazonian Podocnemididae. After a few years, results have shown that these turtles were able to vocalize in order to communicate. They collected 2122 one-second vocalizations and classified them into 11 categories. Turtles use vocalizations to coordinate social behaviours such as vocalizations by female turtles calling to newly hatched offspring or call from hatchings to synchronize their births and call their mothers, and adults signal to synchronize their reproductive behaviour. “These new findings are now supporting and strengthening conservation models for the river turtles”, said Camilia.
Turtle News From Around the World
Conservation
Olive Ridley turtles hatchlings released into Bay of Bengal.
A new Turtle Sanctuary has been built on Antigua.
Clinic is trying to save sea turtles by trying to change people’s mind in Polynesia.
Ecology
Nesting season is over in the Seychelles even though it was longer than usual this year.
Education
Let’s help turtle with the new Connecticut Turtle Atlas project.
Miscellaneous
An alligator snapping turtle was brought into a class before being released.
A tortoise adoption workshop will be organized in Northern Nevada.
Taiwanese fisherman found and released a very unusual “traditional Chinese farmer’s hat”-shaped sea turle.
Did You Know…
In the Temperature-dependent Sex Determination (TSD) pattern IA, there is only one transition zone where males are predominant below this temperature and females are predominant above it.
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Photo from Camila Ferrara
