Help Save the Box Turtles!

When we started the radio telemetry project in 2011, we were tracking 8 eastern box turtles. Over the years, we've lost a few, and while we can guess, it's hard to say exactly what happened to them. In some cases, we located the transmitter but the turtle it was once attached to was long gone. Other times, we've lost all of it  - transmitter, antennae, and turtle. Perhaps the turtle wandered out of range, or the equipment was damaged and can no longer be tracked; a lot can happen in the field beyond our control. When we lose a turtle, the story we were following ends. This is always disappointing since many of these turtles we have been tracking for several years.

You can imagine my surprise then, when one day while turtle tracking I come across a turtle with a transmitter and a broken antennae. Thinking it was one of our currently active turtles whose antennae must have broken since the last time I saw it, I collect the usual data and move on. I assumed that since the receiver led me to it, it must be the one I was looking for, a turtle code named AKV. The next week, I go out and track turtles again. I turn the receiver to AKV's channel, and set out to find her. When I do, I realize something. Her antennae is intact! I check the data, and no reports of other active turtles with broken antennaes have been recorded, so the turtle I saw that week isn't anyone we are currently tracking. It must be someone we lost track of awhile ago - LOP perhaps? I wish I had taken a photo.

Since then, I've been trying to find the mystery turtle with no luck so far. Were they just passing through and happened to be within range for a few short moments before moving on? Where have they been all this time? Hopefully, we'll meet again.

Thank you for following along and supporting the box turtles!

Since 2011, we have been using radio telemetry to follow the lives of eastern box turtles around Leigh Farm Park. We currently have 6 turtles being actively tracked - AOW, ACM, AKV, CIK, OPQ, and CHO. Although we have learned a lot over the years about where they go and how they spend their time, it's important to remember that these turtles provide only a small snapshot into the lives of box turtles as a whole.This is one limitation of radio telemetry - we simply can't track everyone. That's why it's important to use other methods of surveying as well.

To demonstrate this, let's compare two methods of surveying turtles. If we look at a map depicting the recorded locations for the turtles tracked using radio telemetry over the years, we immediately notice that most of the turtles were found over and over again in a small patch of woods in the park. If we were to base our conclusions on these observations alone, it would appear as if box turtles in Leigh Farm Park don't go very far. But, if we expand our surveying power by adding in another method (in this case, mark-recapture), the picture becomes more detailed. Now we see that box turtles are found throughout much of the park. But still, the park is yet again just a snapshot and only has so many turtles. That's where more widespread efforts like Triangle Turtle Trekkers come in.

When working to conserve a species, a key question to consider is the size and type(s) of habitat the species needs to thrive, especially in the face of habitat destruction and fragmentation. To answer this, more data is needed, especially for long-lived animals like box turtles. Every turtle found is another piece of the puzzle, and another step towards saving the box turtles. Thank you so much for your support and participation in this project!