tortoise news

BLM looking for final approval of private lands trade to complete Red Cliffs Desert “Tortoise” Reserve The endangered Desert Tortoise is native to California and Nevada as well as portions of Utah and Arizona; however, despite its seemingly wide range of habitat, this species has declined dramtically to where there are an estimated 100,000 animals left in the wild. One crucial habitat for this tortoise […]

Turtle nesting season begins Turtle nesting season begins Sunday and experts are hoping the four-year trend of high nesting continues. “We are hoping for the best,” she said. “Last year was a good season and we are hoping for another one.” After almost a decade of a low count of nests, females have been coming ashore in higher numbers since 2012. But Eve Haverfield, president

N.J. tries to keep terrapins from becoming road kill, pets or soup On a gray, unseasonably chilly day last week, two turtle hatchlings emerged from their winter hibernation inside a hole three inches beneath the sand at the Jersey Shore. The diamondback terrapins, a unique turtle that lives in brackish waters along the coast and Delaware Bay, would soon taste freedom for the first time.

NSW Scientific Committee lists north coast turtle as critically endangered The Bellinger River Snapping Turtle has officially been raised to a critically endangered status by the New South Wales Scientific Committee. Myuchelys georgesi was battered by a mysterious virus which almost caused their extinction just one year ago. The population took a nose-dive as numbers dropped from approximately 2000 to likely less than 60 animals.

Nesting Season Officially Starts on Sunday It’s here ! The nesting season will officially starts on Sunday, May 1st. Will 2016 be as good as the previous four years ? Well we hope so. Since 2012, we have seen the number of females coming ashore increasing. But, this does not mean that 2016 will be as good. Four years is obviously not enough for a

Guest Post: Successful Propagation of the Chinese Big-headed turtle at Prospect Park Zoo The most recent breeding success story comes from Prospect Park Zoo, with the hatching of Chinese big-headed turtle (Platysternon megacephalum) eggs. Since 2013 there has been encouraging activity with this breeding pair, which has produced multiple viable ova resulting in 13 hatchlings. The Prospect Park Zoo, a member of the Wildlife Conservation

Experts begin preserving Hoan Kiem turtle Vietnamese and German experts on April 21 began processing the body of Hoan Kiem turtle, using the plastination technique. Dr. Phan Ke Long, deputy director of the Vietnam Museum of Nature, said the process may last from one to one and a half years, because the specimen is relatively large. According to German experts, the body of the legendary

Turtle Tracking: How One Group’s Data Tells The Story of an Ecosystem’s Health Last month the North American Freshwater Turtle Research Group conducted studies on 1,047 turtles in North-Central Florida. The group consisted of many dedicated volunteers who took detailed measurements and recorded valuable data as well as microchipping each turtle captured. Data such as growth rate and lifespan were important aspects of the study,