State's deal with cranberry grower Makepeace will preserve large tract of 'globally rare' land

Wareham, MA

The Department of Fish and Game recently purchased, from the A.D. Makepeace Company, a total of 160 acres.

The land is home to several endangered species , including the Northern Red-Bellied Cooter and Eastern Box turtles.

More of the article here.

Help wanted to tally up turtles on reservations

By Bethany Bray
Staff Writer

The Trustees of Reservations are looking for a few volunteers willing to come out of their shells.

The nonprofit, along with the state department of conservation and recreation and natural heritage and endangered species program, is looking for local citizens to help survey the turtle population of Ward Reservation and Harold Parker State Forest.

The two properties, which both span Andover and North Andover, are a potential habitat for eastern box and Blanding's turtles, two species rare to Massachusetts. It is not known how many of the two species live in the more than 4,000 combined acres of Ward and Harold Parker - and that's where the volunteers come in.

This spring, the Trustees of Reservations is launching a turtle census, of sorts. Once they know how many rare turtles are in the areae, the information could be shared with other wildlife and conservation organizations to protect the local turtle habitat.

"We're losing these species for several reasons, and good stewardship would be maintaining these population ... It relates back to biodiversity, making sure we protect biodiversity and native species," said Chris Ward, Andover/North Andover management unit superintendent for the Trustees. "(The survey) is a measure of the health of the ecosystems that we have present on our properties, and will inform our management decisions and actions in the future."

Turtle survey volunteers should have a keen eye and an interest in nature. They'll be recording turtle sightings, going off trail to the numerous vernal pools, wetlands and ponds on the two properties.

Turtles are most visible on warm, sunny spring days, when they sun themselves, just as people love to be outdoors, said Ward.

The eastern box turtle is listed as a "species of special concern" and the Blanding's turtle as "threatened" by the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program.

Species classified as threatened are declining or rare native species which are likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future. Special concern species are native species that have been documented to have suffered a decline that could threaten the species if allowed to continue unchecked, according to the program.

Volunteers for the Ward Reservation and Harold Parker State Forest turtle survey program can be of any age, said Ward, and can volunteer as little or as much time as they like. Two training sessions for turtle volunteers are planned for April 18 and 25.

Several turtle "experts" from conservation and wildlife agencies will be on hand, training volunteers on how to identify Blanding's and Eastern Box turtles, their habitats, distinguishing characteristics and habits. Chris Bowe, a local naturalist, will bring several live turtles he is rehabilitating for attendees to observe, said Ward.

Folks who attend training sessions this month do not have to commit to volunteer as part of the survey project, said Ward. The Trustees hope to have completed results of the turtle survey this summer, said Ward.

"We don't want to eventually lose our populations that we have," said Ward. "The condition of turtles' habitat really affects them, as well as human interaction, invasive species and other factors. All our actions, or lack of action, impact these habitats."

Volunteer as a turtle census-taker

The Trustees of Reservations are looking for volunteers to help survey Ward Reservation and Harold Parker State Forest, documenting the turtle population

• Get started by attending training programs on April 18 or April 25 from 9 a.m. to noon at Ward Reservation, Prospect Road

• For more information, call 978-682-3580 or email turtlesurvey@ttor.org

• Directions are available at the Trustees website, www.thetrustees.org

• If attending with a larger group, such as a Scout troop, please call ahead to RSVP

TURTLE SNAPSHOTS

Here are some specifics on the two rare turtle species that might be living in Harold Parker State Forest and Ward Reservation

Eastern Box Turtle, Terrapene carolina

• "Species of special concern" in Massachusetts

• Small, terrestrial turtle ranging from 11.4-16.5 cm (4.5-6.6 inches) in length

• Active from March through October

• RANGE: From southeastern Maine south to northern Florida, and west to Michigan, Illinois and Tennessee. Although eastern box turtles occur in many towns in Massachusetts, they are more heavily concentrated in the southeastern section of the state.

HABITAT IN MASSACHUSETTS: Inhabits both dry and moist woodlands, fields, thickets, marsh edges and stream banksSClB

Blanding's Turtle, Emydoidea blandingii

• "Threatened" species in Massachusetts

• Mid-sized turtle ranging between 16 and 22 cm (6-9 inches) in shell length

• Most distinguishing feature is its long, yellow throat and chin, which makes it recognizable at a distance

• Active March through October

• RANGE: Found primarily in the Great Lakes region, extending to Kansas. Several smaller, disjunct populations occur in the East: in southern Nova Scotia, in an arc extending from eastern Massachusetts through southeastern New Hampshire to southern Maine, and in the lower Hudson Valley of New York. These populations (with the exception of N.H.) are all listed as threatened or endangered at the state or provincial level.

• HABITAT IN MASSACHUSETTS: A variety of wetland and terrestrial habitat types, including seasonal pools, marshes, scrub-shrub wetlands and open uplands. Habitat use appears to vary according to the individual and the amount of precipitation, with more upland utilization during dry years; wetlands are used for overwintering during their inactive season

Source: Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife

Citizen scientist turtle survey

Citizen scientist turtle survey

Massachusetts turtles are in trouble. Help by volunteering to survey turtles at the Ward Reservation and Harold Parker State Forest Saturday, April 18 or Saturday, April 25, 9 a.m. to noon, at the Ward Reservation.

Program will teach volunteers everything they need to know from turtle biology basics to survey techniques, and will feature a field walk to test those new skills. Live turtles will be on hand for observation.

Turtles face threats from loss of habitat, predators such as skunks and raccoons, illegal collecting and the dangers of crossing the road. Volunteers can help by becoming a citizen scientist and documenting turtles. Their work will help protect these fascinating creatures.

This is a free training with the hope that attendees will become independent volunteer monitors at Ward Reservation and Harold Parker State Forest. It is perfect for families with children looking to explore the outdoors.

For information on the program, e-mail turtlesurvey@ttor.org or call 978-682-3580.

Directions are available at the Trustees Web site, www.thetrustees.org.

All About Turtles of Cape Cod

All About Turtles of Cape Cod, a talk by Bob Prescott, director of the Massachusetts Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary. He will discuss turtles of the land, sea and marsh that are found here on Cape Cod.

Thurs., April 30 – 6:30 p.m. - All About Turtles of Cape Cod - Bob Prescott, Director of Mass Audubon's Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary

BROOKS FREE LIBRARY

739 Main St., Harwich, MA 02645

Email: bfl_mail@clamsnet.org

For more information call 508-430-7562.

Lucy, the Loggerhead

Sea turtles released back into wild

TAMPA - After years of treatment and rehabilitation, Florida Aquarium marine biologists have released two sea turtles back into the wild.

The turtles and their caretakers left for the east coast of Florida around 8 a.m.

One is a Kemp's Ridley sea turtle, and is the most endangered kind; the other is a loggerhead sea turtle, which is classified as "threatened" in Florida.

Biologists say they are both rare, and their successful rehabilitation comes after years of treatment for their injuries.

The Loggerhead, named "Lucy" by her caretakers, was brought to the Aquarium in 2006 after a boat hit her, damaging her spine, and rendering her paraplegic.

"Lucy" no longer has use of her back flippers. Biologists say turtles in this condition usually have to stay in captivity, but "Lucy" is able to maneuver herself well, and was approved for release by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

The Kemp's Ridley sea turtle came to the Aquarium in 2002 after becoming stranded in Massachusetts. It had extensive shell rot, which was eventually cleared up with antibiotics.

Both turtles were returned to the wild near Cape Canaveral.

Source: http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/dpp/news/local/hillsborough/Sea_turtles_released_032909

"The Turtle Lady of Juno Beach"

JUNO BEACH - Eleanor Fletcher, the iconic "Turtle Lady of Juno Beach," who founded the town's marine life museum on her back porch and taught thousands about the ocean through beach tours and nighttime turtle-watching expeditions over three decades, died Tuesday. She was 92.

Ms. Fletcher moved to Juno Beach from Massachusetts in the late 1960s, planning to retire. But she became a local celebrity and one of the area's most celebrated amateur naturalists after taking an interest in turtle tracks she found along the shore near her condo.

More here.

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Over 25 years ago, long-time Juno Beach resident Eleanor Fletcher started what is now the Marinelife Center of Juno Beach.



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-Make a donation in her honor-

Tiny turtles on hand for talk

WAREHAM - They are hidden everywhere, from the waters of Buzzards Bay to the backyard, a fact many homeowners have found out a little too late while mowing their lawns or backing out of their driveway.

There are almost a dozen species of turtle along the South Coast that visit the waters or make their homes in the areas that are still a little bit wild. From the red-bellied cooter to the loggerhead, the long-living turtles can be found almost everywhere if you know just how to look for them, and few people know where to look better than local turtle experts Don Lewis and Sue Wieber Nourse.

“We’re going to start out with the local guys we run over with our cars...” Lewis interrupted himself. “...That we find in our backyards.”

On Valentine’s Day, the couple came to the Wareham Free Library to talk about turtles.

The first step was to turn everyone in the room into an expert on the reptiles with one word: temperature.

According to Lewis, temperature was the answer to most questions about how turtles function in the world around them.

Whether they’re terrapins, tortoises or sea turtles, as cold-blooded animals, turtles orient much of their lives around keeping their body temperatures in the right range. They spend their mornings basking in the sun on rock sand logs, and they go into a deep hibernation in the winter when the cold slows their bodies down. Temperature can even determine what sex a turtle will turn out to be after it hatches, since unlike humans, turtles don’t have an X or Y chromosome.

For Lewis and Nourse, teaching about turtles is important because many species are threatened or endangered and serve as a signal that their habitats and the rest of the animals that dwell in them might be in trouble. It also doesn’t hurt that children love turtles, teenage mutant ninja or not, and that connection can be used to teach them about the natural world as a whole.

In Massachusetts, the Eastern box turtle is threatened by the destruction of its habitat due to residential expansion. The turtle typically likes to live at the edge of the woods near grassy fields where it’s easy to find slugs and snails, but their habit of wandering into the grass also leaves them vulnerable to one of their main predators: lawn mowers.

Lewis shared a photo of a box turtle with a shell chipped and marred by mower blades when an inattentive homeowner or grounds keeper has accidentally struck one of these slow moving creatures. Although the turtle’s shell can regenerate, it is neither a safe nor pleasant experience for anyone involved.

The red-bellied cooter is listed as endangered by the Massachusetts Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, its range having been confined to a few pools and ponds within Plymouth County. The turtle is easy to distinguish because the bottom shell is either red (for females) or a pale pink (on males).

The cooter spends its life almost exclusively in the water, coming out to lay its eggs in sandy soil or to migrate if the going gets too tough in their pond. The spread of residential areas and the destruction of Pine Barrens has destroyed much of their local habitat, making it much more difficult for the turtles to migrate.

Herbicides and other chemicals used to treat ponds, pools and bogs also slow down the maturation of the cooter and its reproductive cycle. This means fewer and fewer turtles are laying fewer and fewer eggs. There are certain areas in Plymouth where the turtle has been found that are protected, and while the turtle has been spotted in Wareham, their nesting sites haven’t been located.

“We really nee to know where this turtle is in Wareham,” Lewis said.

Lewis also brought along a few diamondback terrapin hatchlings no bigger than a half-dollar. The terrapin is found from the edge of the Cape to New Bedford, but while it is threatened in Massachusetts for many of the same reasons other turtles are, such as the destruction of its habitat by suburban sprawl, there is another reason in particular: Terrapins were very popular in turtle soup through the middle part of the 1900s.

On his way down to his inauguration, John F. Kennedy was said to have stopped at the home of one socialite for a cup of the soup.

“Can you guess why they’re threatened?” Lewis said.

While harvesting the terrapin is now illegal in the commonwealth, the turtle has seen many of the salt-water marshes and estuaries they call home disappear over the years.

Lewis and others are helping the public to see the wildlife around them in the hopes of coexisting a little better, even if it’s just slowing down when turtles are laying their eggs so they don’t run over a few hatchlings during the commute.

Lewis offered one very important reason why turtles were a great animal to study.

“When you get to be a certain age, you like to find a species that you have a chance of catching,” he said.

To find out more about Lewis and Wieber’s investigations into the turtles of the South Coast, visit their Web site at www.turtlejournal.com.

Source: http://www.wickedlocal.com/plymouth/news/education/x1362389834/Tiny-turtles-on-hand-for-talk