tortoise news

Pennsylvania relocating Pseudemys rubriventris for dam repairs Last year, the state released $25.7 million in capital budget funding to repair five “high-hazard, unsafe dams,” including Minsi Lake in Upper Mount Bethel Township. The 117-acre lake is home to a variety of aquatic plant and animal species, including redbelly turtles — also known as red-bellied turtles or red-bellied cooters. They’re on the threatened species list in […]

Massive Gopherus agassizii Relocation Project Finally Successfully Accomplished The most extensive Gopherus agassizii relocation project performed by the US Marine Corps was finally completed last month. Taking two weeks to complete, over 1100 tortoises were loaded into helicopters and transported to their new location. After each tortoise was captured, it was given a thorough health check before being making the flight. Biologists express concern over

Ontario Conservation Program Makes Great Leaps Towards Public Education One organization located in Ontario dedicates 100% of it’s efforts to the conservation of it’s native chelonians, in particular Chelydra serpentina . The Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre (OTCC) has spent 15 years in the race to stop their extinction. In addition to their extensive educational programs, they also implement research projects and rehabilitate injured turtles at

University of Missouri-Columbia discovers genetic pathways changed in Chrysemis picta through BPA exposure It’s been known that exposure to Bisphenol A, a chemical found in many plastics that constantly finds its way into the environment, can affect the reproductive processes of the painted turtle. Scientists have recently discovered exactly how it occurs at the genetic level, and they hope that this knowledge will help others

Female Gopherus agassizii May be Insuring Species Survival at the Cost of Their Lives Joshua Tree National Park is a haven for numerous Gopherus agassizii, which continue to successfully reproduce year after year, despite a progressively severe drought. Recently a concerning number of deceased females have been discovered within the park, and biologists are working to determine the cause of this unusual die-off. Jeffey Lovich,

Toxic Element Discovered in Chelydra serpentina Enables Biologists to Develop New Strategies Who would have thought that a toenail would reveal such important information about the ecosystem? A New York lake is the focus of this intriguing study. After collecting toenail samples from Chelydra serpentina in Onondaga Lake, scientists discovered that the turtles contained surprisingly high levels of mercury, sixteen times more concentrated than another

Chelus fimbriata receives innovative treatment A strange-looking freshwater turtle, Betty, a mata mata turtle at Riverbanks Zoo, is native to South America. Her brownish-black shell resembles bark, her head bears semblance to fallen leaves, and her neck looks a bit like a long leaf. Betty holds a unique distinction: she is one of only a few turtles in the United States to receive radiation treatment

Temple Implementing Measures to Provide a More Suitable Environment for Resident Turtles A Thailand temple is making efforts to improve the captive environment and husbandry of their resident turtles. After a visit from officials, spurred by social media posts, the temple stated that they would build a second pond to reduce overcrowding in the current setup. The turtles are an important aspect of Asian culture,

Sea Turtles Being ‘Temporarily Relocated’ In “anticipation of intense boating activity in the Great Sound,” the America’s Cup Bermuda is “coordinating a temporary sea turtle relocation project,” in which “Sea turtles will be netted based on methods used successfully for turtle tagging operations and temporarily relocated inside a purpose-built ocean enclosure near the Bermuda Aquarium Museum and Zoo [BAMZ] in Flatts. The area was chosen