Help Save the Box Turtles!

As I write this, the rain falls down noisily onto the roof of the cabin while the birds still continue their song; Spring is near. As nature comes alive once again, so does the activity of our beloved Eastern box turtles. 

I have been a wildlife conservation intern at Piedmont Wildlife Center for almost a month, yet I have already learned so much during my time here. Easily my favorite responsibility as an intern is to play turtle-tracker, despite the seven turtles we currently track being underground, or “brumating”, during the winter season. 

However, out of sight does not mean out of mind with the radio telemetry project. Turtle tracking will soon ramp up as the temperatures warm and our favorite reptiles emerge from their leaf-litter hiding places. This season of tracking is already proving to be an interesting one as my last outing to turtle-track led me to the discovery of a transmitter without a turtle. What could have happened to this turtle? Is it still nearby? What is its story? Hopefully, on my next outing to the area where this turtle resides, I will find some answers to my many questions.

As vexing as it was to try and hypothesize the whereabouts of this turtle, it is exciting to realize that a new story may begin for the next turtle we outfit with the now turtle-less transmitter. I look forward to being a part of the new beginning for that lucky Eastern box turtle who will have its story told through the beeps and blinking lights of the radio receiver.

Spring marks new beginnings, and I look forward to taking advantage of many new beginnings at the Piedmont Wildlife Center. Your contribution to this program is integral to its accomplishments and new beginnings; thank you for helping the Box Turtle Connection project live on!

Links:

• Become a Triangle Turtle Trekker

Our turtles have been busy since our last update. The leaves are changing and the weather is starting to cool down, so we have been finding our turtles underground more and more as they prepare for brumation, but they still show off their shells on a nice, rainy day. Over the course of the last month, we have been replacing our turtles' transmitters before they are all underground for the winter. 

Even though our box turtles may be underground, we are still able to locate them via radio telemetry. Out of sight, but not out of tracking distance! In addition to hiding underground, eastern box turtles can have a home range anywhere from .5 to 10 acres! This makes finding turtles a true mystery. Radio telemetry is critical in being able to find and collect data on these sly creatures. You can think of radio telemetry as a wildlife biologist's magnifying glass!

So why are we turtle detectives? In North Carolina, the North Carolina Wildlife Action Plan lists box turtles as a priority species and has initiated mark-recapture projects to help monitor box turtle populations and alert wildlife biologists of any changes in their numbers. Piedmont Wildlife Center is instrumental in this research through its Turtle Trekkers citizen science project, Box Turtle Connections, and the monitoring of seven local box turtles via radio telemetry. 

What is radio telemetry? Radio telemetry uses radio signals and requires the use of an antenna/receiver and a transmitter. Similar to your car radio, the receiver's antenna picks up on the electromagnetic frequency being emitted by the transmitter and transforms these radio signals into beeping sounds. Radio telemetry is different from GPS in that we do not get sent location data. We have to go out and search for the turtles via the beeping sound from the receiver. Think of it like The Hot and Cold game - the closer you get to a turtle with a transmitter on it, the louder the beep and the farther you get from a transmitter turtle the quieter the beep. 

As can be seen, tracking turtles this way requires a lot of time and money! Since our last update, we have had to replace the old transmitters on the seven local box turtles we monitor. These transmitters have to be replaced every two years and are NOT cheap! In addition to the radio telemetry instruments, a handheld GPS is needed to mark the coordinates of the turtles once they are found. Fortunately, we are able to purchase these research tools due to the donations from our generous donors. 

Therefore, we would like to send a special THANK YOU to our donors!!! Without their vital support, we would not be able to carry out these crucial conservation projects which aid in Eastern Box Turtle population monitoring.

Want to be a turtle detective? Participate in box turtle research via Piedmont Wildlife Center's Turtle Trekkers linked below. Donations are also a HUGE help! Donations can help pay for supplies such as the NEW transmitters we put our transmitter turtles. Supplies like these are extremely important to continue our research of Eastern Box Turtles and in turn, to saving the species. 

Who wouldn't want to help save this cute little guy?

Links:

• Turtle Trekkers