Female Diamondback Terrapin Basking in Sippican Harbor
Turtle Journal’s Sue Wieber Nourse spotted the first diamondback terrapins basking in Sippican Harbor off Buzzards Bay on the South Coast of Massachusetts at low tide on Thursday afternoon, March 22nd. An early spring emergence for diamondback terrapins in the Great White North.
First 2012 Basking Terrapin in Sippican Harbor
On Friday, Sue paddled her kayak back to Sippican Harbor. She discovered a half dozen active terrapins, including a male and female pair. Amazing; the water is still cool to the touch, these turtles have just woken from six months of slumber, their biological systems are still trying to adjust, yet IT’S SPRINGTIME! And in spring, as Alfred Lord Tennison tried to teach us, a young turtle’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.
Northern Red Bellied-Cooters Basking in Wareham, MA
Turtle Journal’s colleague Cat Honkonen found six endangered red bellied-cooters basking on rocks in a Wareham pond on Friday, March 23rd. She snapped this photograph of four cooters enjoying the warm sunshine after emerging from winter slumber. Northern Red Bellied-Cooters (Pseudemys rubriventris) are federally protected as threatened and are listed in Massachusetts as an endangered species by the Massachusetts Natural Heritage & Endangered Species Program.
Closeup of Basking Northern Red-Bellied Cooters
Cat is experiencing the “miracle” of elusive turtles. She notes, “Somehow they managed to multiply over the winter. I saw at least six (6) today. How could they do that? I know I only saw two (2) last year.”  Thanks to citizen scientists like Cat who monitor endangered species in Massachusetts, the knowledge they provide about locations, population size and activies ensures that we can protect these critters for future generations of Bay Staters.
Wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) are typically the first amphibians Turtle Journal encounters each March. No difference this year. Last week, when we checked for signs of spring emergence in wetlands surrounding the abandoned Goldwitz cranberry bog in Marion, the only peep we heard was a single wood frog. Deep in the swamp, a plaintive, unanswered call echoed through the brush.
Wood Frogs Haunt Spooky Swamp
Today, as we revisited the same area, a chorus of wood frogs greeted our arrival. Water levels in the wetlands were extremely low, and frogs had moved their mating aggregation out of the abandoned bog and deeper into the swamp.  Low gray clouds blanketed the day.  With only their calls as guide, Turtle Journal zigzagged through thickets and woodlands until we reached one very, very spooky hollow that seemed straight out of a Hollywood set for the scariest horror film ever made … or perhaps a darker, even grimmer remake of Deliverance.
Wood Frog Egg Mass in Abandoned Goldwitz Bog
After locating the site of the aggregation, Turtle Journal searched nearby bog channels until we discovered freshly deposited wood frog egg masses.
Spring Peeper (Pseudoacris crucifer)
As we left the bog this afternoon, a single, solitary peeper called out; a sure sign that spring is in the air.
Turtle Journal discovered this lovely pair of spotted turtles (Clemmys guttata) on March 14th. The male turtle #2003 on the left and the female turtle #13 on the right were basking in the filtered sunshine on a mossy bank of the small pond at Brainard Marsh in Marion. As early as March 8th, Sue Wieber Nourse had glimpsed this couple lazing along the edge of the pond, yet they were so entangled in muck and debris that they were impossible to capture. Basking on the land today, however, they afforded Sue just the chance she needed to snare them in our long-handle sampling net.
Examining the Female Spotted Turtle
Back at Turtle Journal Central, we closely examined the female turtle that we had first encountered in the pouring rain on March 29th, 2010. (See Spotted Turtles Lovin’ in the Rain.) We wanted to see how she had come through brumation during this record warm winter. We also wanted to re-examine the bump on the right side of her vertebral. As demonstrated in this examination, she exhibits gorgeous coral orange female coloration on her neck and chin.
Female Spotted Turtle Weighs 218 Grams
Female spotted turtle #13 weighed in at 218 grams, surprisingly light compared to her smaller and more compact male companion that tipped the scales at 211 grams. We speculate that her larger, more hollow frame will accommodate the need for egg development, which should begin next month.
Female Spotted Turtle Carapace Anomalies
Spotted turtle #13 has easily recognizable scutal anomalies on her carapace. She sports seven rather than five vertebral scutes and five rather than four right costal scutes. Her prominent bump on the right side of her penultimate vertebral scute showed no change from two years ago.
Female Spotted Turtle – Male Spotted Turtle
Having the adorable couple, female #13 (left) and male #2003 (right), together presented an excellent opportunity to illustrate gender differences among spotted turtles. As you can see from the picture above, female #13 has washboard flat “abs” on her plastron, while male #2003 shows the typical male concavity in the center posterior of his plastron. For those like us who enjoy tracing the history of these charismatic critters, male #2003 was first observed on March 18th, 2011. (See First Spotted Turtle of 2011.) His measurements and weight today were identical to those recorded last year.
Female Spotted Turtle — Male Spotted Turtle
Two other gender differences are illustrated, at least partially, in the image above. Female #13 is on the left. She shows the beautiful, bright female coral orange coloration at the bottom of her chin and on her neck. Although male #2003 was too shy to show his head for the picture on the right, he had a drab male grayish color on his chin and neck. Easier to distinguish above, female #13 has a thin tail with the anal vent inside the length of her carapace. Male #2003 sports a large, thick tail with the anal vent outside the length of his carapace.Â
Female Spotted #13 Leads Male Spotted #2003 Back to Pond
After a short diversion with the Turtle Journal team for a quick checkup and a chance to add to our knowledge of these exquisite, yet elusive critters, the adorable couple were released back at the exact spot along the banks of the Brainard Marsh pond. The temperature had dropped into the very low 40s, enough to make any sane thinking turtle a bit sluggish. As soon as female #13 got her bearings, she stomped off to the pond, struggled out about 20 feet toward the center and submerged into the oozy bottom. Male #2003 stubbornly clung to his perch on the mossy patch until he was sure that his female companion had safely tested the waters. He then slid down the bank with a thud and immediately dove into the shoreline muck and debris. Turtle Journal salutes the adorable couple and thanks them for their mid March visit.
Gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus) along the Gulf Coast of Naples, Florida occupy some of the richest, most coveted terrain in the world. Digging burrows in the shadow of towering waterfront highrises, Vanderbilt Beach tortoises live on the jagged edge of luxury and extinction. No matter how loudly humans declare fascination with exotic wildlife, they can’t seem to tolerate neighbors that restrict unbridled development of every inch of shoreline.
Vanderbilt Beach at Sunrise
A late February morning finds Turtle Journal catching the sunrise on Vanderbilt beach in Naples as we explore Gulf Coast fauna and check out the few remaining tortoise burrows wedged precariously between luxury condo skyscrapers.Â
Gopher Tortoise Competing for Ritzy Domain
Recognizing a kindred spirit, a male golpher tortoise strolls out to meet the Turtle Journal team. Near 80-degree warmth has piqued his interest in exploring his surroundings for food and … of course … love. As burrows are displaced by development, the challenge of finding a mate grows more difficult. As the human urge to “control” and “neaten” natural vegetation around the burrows, foraging too becomes more difficult.
Male Gopher Tortoise
This young healthy male measured about 12 inches long …
Male Gopher Tortoise Carapace
… from nuchal at the tip of his domed carapace to the rear. A few, maybe ten, annual growth rings can still be discerned in his costal scutes, but most annuli have been obscured by wear and tear.
Male Gopher Tortoise Plastron
The maleness of a gopher tortoise can be identified by concavity … hard to verify in the above two-dimensional photograph … in the center posterior of his plastron and by the gular protrusion at the plastron anterior under his chin.
Humans Remove “Invasive” Vegetation around Burrows
During Turtle Journal’s February 2012 inspection of Vanderbilt habitat, we noticed that people had begun to clear vegetation from around these tortoise burrows. When asked what they were doing, workers said that they were removing “invasive” vegetation. While we can’t and don’t dispute this claim, the clearing did seem more global than targeted against specific species. We wonder how tortoises will fare on these largely denuded sites and hope that seasonal growth will quickly restore forage.
Tortoise Disturbed Crossing Beach “Highway”
Another challenge confronting these gentle reptiles on the Gulf Coast is the constant vehicular traffic along the luxury beachfront. Whether “sweeping” sandy beaches clear of natural wrack each morning or simply racing up and down Vanderbilt Beach in a frentic effort to emulate Indy car drivers, humans disturb roaming tortoises with motion, noise and tire ruts.
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Vanderbilt Beach Gopher Tortoise
Turtle Journal cherishes its visit with Florida’s gopher tortoises each winter and hopes that these humble reptiles can survive the insatiable human appetite to monopolize the Gulf Coast beach.
