• The Red-bellied Turtle (right) is almost as large as a Snapping Turtle; it has a pink-tinted shell, is ve
ry sturdy, and weighs up to 4500 g. It's primarily herbivorous (more carnivorous when young). There is a small, endangered population in Plymouth MA; a gap between this population and others residing more southerly may, it’s theorized, be due to over-hunting by Native American populations. They only come to land long enough to nest.
• Eastern Mud Turtle: A small, nondescript, bland turtle. All have a musk gland near their rear legs that is very smelly. They are very small. A roughened patch on the inner rear thighs and longer tails allow for identification of the male.
• Common Musk Turtle, aka “The Stinkpot”
• Spotted Turtles reside into the north, up into Canada, which is unusual.
• Spotted Turtles reside into the north, up into Canada, which is unusual.
• Diamond-backed Terrapin (left) can live in salty water; they are now protected from commercial harvest.
• Bog Turtle is tiny, to 11.4 cm. It is only found in 4 northern Maryland, and is federally protected. It is not doing very well due to habitat destruction.vest.
Jug Bay on the Patuxent River
• Box Turtle census plots
• Hoop trapping sites
• Red-bellied Cooter nesting areas
• There are many volunteers; undergraduate students come in the summertime. They study overall biology to add to the knowledge base on these animals: nesting, eating habits, etc.
o Foraging
o Where they nest
o Where they overwinter
o Diet (adult)
o Local population status
o Regional status
• Methods:
o Hoop traps: all students learn how to use these
o Radio telemetry: great way to study habitat use and movements of individuals—lets them get to know each turtle as an individual
• Females have a very large home range (avg 8 hectares); males have a much smaller one (under 2 hectares); juvenile smallest (around 1 hectare)
• Radio telemetry allowed them to track a juvenile turtle quite some distance from its birthplace (juvenile dispersal)
• Juveniles probably have a higher rate of mortality than adults
• Disease is appearing in a few
Red-bellied Turtle photo from statesymbolsusa.org
Diamond-backed Terrapin photo from msa.md.gov
• Hoop trapping sites
• Red-bellied Cooter nesting areas
• There are many volunteers; undergraduate students come in the summertime. They study overall biology to add to the knowledge base on these animals: nesting, eating habits, etc.
o Foraging
o Where they nest
o Where they overwinter
o Diet (adult)
o Local population status
o Regional status
• Methods:
o Hoop traps: all students learn how to use these
o Radio telemetry: great way to study habitat use and movements of individuals—lets them get to know each turtle as an individual
• Females have a very large home range (avg 8 hectares); males have a much smaller one (under 2 hectares); juvenile smallest (around 1 hectare)
• Radio telemetry allowed them to track a juvenile turtle quite some distance from its birthplace (juvenile dispersal)
• Juveniles probably have a higher rate of mortality than adults
• Disease is appearing in a few
Red-bellied Turtle photo from statesymbolsusa.org
Diamond-backed Terrapin photo from msa.md.gov
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