Help Save 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!