|
|
|
|
December 1999
I hope it is true that we learn most from mistakes, because I made a big one. The morning of September 7 it was raining and I was on my way to work. On a back road along the Androscoggin River, I saw a turtle crossing the road. Three inches from the edge of the black top, with just a few more steps it would be safe in the underbrush. As I slowed down, it raised its head and glanced my way. I think it was a painted turtle.
I stopped, considering what I should do. My reasoning process, which was drastically flawed, went something like this. There is hardly any traffic on this road. The turtle has only a few inches more until it reaches safety. It is unwise to stop in the road, perhaps endangering others and myself. These thoughts whirled around the basic precept I had accepted, that one does not interfere with wildlife: let nature take its course.
I wondered about the turtle and its fate, until I drove the road two days later. There in the same spot was the turtle, on its back, legs and head extended, the end result of a death struggle. A passing car must have tipped the turtle onto its shell, and it had not been able to right itself.
A few weeks later, a woman called. She had watched several young turtles struggling to climb from the nest where, earlier in the summer, she'd seen a turtle lay twenty-four eggs. The nest had vertical sides and the hatchlings couldn't make the climb out. She had moved some sand at the nest opening to make the climb easier. When several individuals headed away from the river, she redirected them.
We talked about the life history of the snapping turtle, which is what these turtles were, so she would understand what she was observing. I suggested that, in the future, the best policy was not to interfere with turtles, or any wildlife, unless there is immediate danger, especially from a human source. Concerned that her actions should have no negative effect, she promised in the future not to interfere. We said goodbye and hung up, but I wasn't happy with my advice to her. I wanted to talk more about the interference issue, so I called her back. We have already affected the natural world so much that there is no escape from human influence, whether it is compromised air, water or the landscape. It is an obligation that we help in any way we can. I said I thought the best approach was to think before we act, and then to do what informed compassion suggests.
Turtles have a struggle. They experience low nest success and a high juvenile mortality rate. Once turtles are sexually mature, generally between five to twenty years, their natural survival rate is high. There are few predators capable of successfully killing an adult turtle. The adults are long-lived, and luckily so because it may take a turtle an entire lifetime just to replace himself or herself with one new turtle before death. Furthermore, while some limited dispersal occurs by juveniles, adult females are often faithful to a particular area for nesting and local population extinctions may occur when adults die prematurely without replacing themselves.
There are two big problems for turtles caused by humans. First is habitat destruction and degradation. Because all turtles nest on land, their habitat is comprised of both wetlands and the adjacent uplands. In southern Maine, residential and road development chop habitats into parcels too small to support viable populations. With roads close to productive wetlands and roads that cut across migration routes connecting nesting, feeding and overwintering areas, casualties due to roadkill are high.
The second problem in turtle conservation is legal and illegal collection for the pet trade, which permanently removes adults from the natural breeding population. In Maine, it is illegal to possess the state endangered spotted, Blandings, or box turtles in captivity without a permit issued by the Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.
There is a wonderful new book available, Maine Amphibians and Reptiles, ISBN 0-89101-096-3, published by the University of Maine Press. You can call 207-581-1408 to purchase a copy, or visit a bookstore. The more we know about these lovely creatures, the better we can understand their habitat needs and when it is appropriate to "interfere" on their behalf. And the next time I see a turtle in the road, you know I am stopping to help!
By Nancy Coverstone (ncstone@umext.maine.edu), University of Maine Extension Educator in Androscoggin and Sagadahoc Counties
Return to Wild About Nature Table of Contents
Putting knowledge to work with the people of Maine
A Member of the University of Maine System
Last Modified:
08/13/06
These pages are currently being maintained from the
Communications Office Office, University of Maine Cooperative Extension.
Send comments, suggestions or inquiries to www-questions@umext.maine.edu
COUNTY OFFICES | PROGRAMS | RESOURCES | PUBLICATIONS | WHAT'S NEWS | UMAINE EXTENSION HOME | UMAINE
Information in this web site is provided purely for educational purposes. No responsibility is assumed for any problems associated with the use of products or services mentioned in this web site. No endorsement of products or companies is intended, nor is criticism of unnamed products or companies implied.
