{"id":6464,"date":"2010-06-13T11:28:43","date_gmt":"2010-06-13T16:28:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/?p=6464"},"modified":"2010-06-13T17:57:41","modified_gmt":"2010-06-13T22:57:41","slug":"saving-turtles-saving-eggs-saving-the-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/?p=6464","title":{"rendered":"Saving Turtles, Saving Eggs, Saving the Future"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"terrapin<\/a><\/p>\n

Northernmost\u00c2\u00a0Diamondback Terrapin<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

For more than a decade, Turtle Journal has teamed with local residents of Outer Cape Cod and partnered with Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary to restore the region’s threatened population of northern diamondback terrapins (Malaclemys terrapin terrapin<\/em>).\u00c2\u00a0 These elusive coastal turtles have\u00c2\u00a0thrived in\u00c2\u00a0the salt marsh systems of Cape Cod for centuries, if not millennia, only coming under existential pressure since the arrival of European settlers and most recently the press of human development into their fragile marsh environment and its abutting sandy uplands.\u00c2\u00a0 Thankfully, for these magnificent reptiles, intense human exploitation of the Outermost Cape came late enough to allow a small remnant\u00c2\u00a0population to survive and affording us the\u00c2\u00a0honor to restore it.\u00c2\u00a0 In neighoring\u00c2\u00a0regions such as Massachusetts’ South Coast, civilizaton and modernity have nearly wiped out diamondback terrapins from the habitat.<\/p>\n

\"the<\/a><\/p>\n

Freshly Laid Diamondback Terrapin Egg<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Not willing or able to settle the long standing argument of which came first the turtle or the egg, Turtle Journal will simply assert that our successful restoration of the Outer Cape terrapin population began with protecting eggs, whether being carried by females or buried in the ground.\u00c2\u00a0 We focused our conservation initiative on preventing disturbance, injury and death to female terrapins lugging their eggs landward to their natal nesting sites, on finding nests before the predators, and on protecting\u00c2\u00a0about 5% of nests\u00c2\u00a0from incubation to hatching in the late summer and early fall.\u00c2\u00a0 We hypothesized that substantially increasing live hatchlings entering the nursery habitat would result in a dramatic increase in recruits into the sub-adult and adult population.\u00c2\u00a0 This hypothesis proved as correct in practice as it did on the drawing board.\u00c2\u00a0 Starting withs 9 gram (1\/3 ouce) eggs we would create a new world\u00c2\u00a0of terrapins.<\/p>\n

\"depredated<\/a><\/p>\n

Freshly Depredated Diamondback Terrapin Egg<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

We never intended to stop all predation.\u00c2\u00a0 After all, the mammal population of Outer Cape Cod depends on turtle eggs to feed their spring born young.\u00c2\u00a0 And turtle survival strategy depends on over-producing eggs on the likelihood that as high as 99% of eggs and hatchlings will be consumed by predators before reaching adulthood.\u00c2\u00a0 Our goal was to modestly protect perhaps 5% of nests and to assist the successful offspring of natural, unprotected nests to reach the safety of the nursery salt marsh in the fall.\u00c2\u00a0 Still, on an emotional level, seeing a terrapin egg destroyed by a predator creates a bit of anger and frustration even in the most scientific of the Turtle Journal team.<\/p>\n

\"turtle<\/a><\/p>\n

Protected Diamondback Terrapin Nest on Outer Cape Cod<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

On the other hand, what brings unbridled joy to Turtle Journal is the accumulation of protected terrapin nests along the uplands of Outer Cape Cod with tiny blue flags snapping in the summer breeze.\u00c2\u00a0 They offer the promise of survival for the northernmost diamondback terrapin population.<\/p>\n

\"road<\/a><\/p>\n

Outer Cape Terrapin Nesting in Tire Tracks<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Protecting egg production means protecting mothers.\u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0Some of the favored nesting locations for terrapins\u00c2\u00a0on the Outer Cape are dirt roads, especially on sandy Lieutenant Island which has become the densest nesting spot for terrapins perhaps in all of New England.\u00c2\u00a0 While obviously nesting in the middle of tire tracks on a well traveled summer road can be extremely life threatening for the mother who blends in perfectly with the surroundings, these dirt roads have proven extremely productive for hatchlings.\u00c2\u00a0 If the female can successfully bury her architecturally sound nest in the hard-packed dirt, our movement across the road with our cars, dogs and garbage keeps predators at bay.\u00c2\u00a0 Depredation rates in Outer Cape dirt roads can be one tenth the level of predation in isolated dunes.\u00c2\u00a0 Still, protecting these vulnerable females can be a challenge. We post signs and alert visitors, but the best protection for nesting terrapins comes from vigilant and pro-active residents.\u00c2\u00a0 Last Friday a great friend and long-time resident of Lieutenant Island literally threw himself in front of speeding workmen who were about to crush a nesting female.\u00c2\u00a0 Jim waved them off and quipped, “I’d rather have them hit me than her.”\u00c2\u00a0 Such is the support that these quirky diamondback terrapins have elicited from their co-inhabitants of the island.<\/p>\n

<\/embed><\/object>\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

Four Saved Eggs from Depredated Terrapin Nest<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

On Saturday, Turtle Journal discovered the first depredated nest on Lieutenant Island’s Turtle Point.\u00c2\u00a0 Crestfallen, we saw that the predator had largely wasted the protein, digging up the eggs, cracking them open, but abandoning them unconsumed.\u00c2\u00a0 Instead, an army of ants darted back and forth across the eggs collecting nutrients.\u00c2\u00a0 Turtle Journal checked the egg chamber of the depredated nest, and rejoiced in finding four intact, potentially viable eggs still tucked in the bottom edges of the nest.\u00c2\u00a0 Four eggs that may yield four fall hatchlings!\u00c2\u00a0 We cleaned and relocated the eggs to a new “salvage” nest where we will incubate eggs from partially depredated nests that we find during the next several weeks.<\/p>\n

\"terrapin<\/a><\/p>\n

Northern\u00c2\u00a0Diamondback Terrapin<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Every terrapin seems to have a story to tell … if we could only understand them.\u00c2\u00a0 This beautiful female nester from the Outer Cape wanted to tell the tale of how her nest at the dune off the Boathouse Beach path was discovered and protected by Turtle Journal in Saturday afternoon’s rain storm.<\/p>\n

<\/embed><\/object>\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tracking Turtles, Saving Nests<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

We reached Lieutenant Island’s “Hook” at the northeast corner in early afternoon.\u00c2\u00a0 Clouds had socked in and the morning’s drizzle had transformed into a hard rain.\u00c2\u00a0 Just to the east of the Boathouse Beach footpath, we spotted terrapin tracks that were rapidly disappearing in the downpour.\u00c2\u00a0 We could see how\u00c2\u00a0she had\u00c2\u00a0crisscrossed the dune, climbing up and slaloming down, stopping every few feet to dig a test hole as she looked for the perfect spot to deposit her eggs.\u00c2\u00a0 One spot looked particularly lucrative as the most\u00c2\u00a0likely site for her nest and our excavation yielded sixteen perfect pink eggs that had been freshly laid within the hour.<\/p>\n

\"boathouse<\/a><\/p>\n

Nest 111 on Boathouse Beach Path Dune<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Nest #111 with predator excluder cage and blue flag now marks the spot where these sixteen eggs will incubate through June and July and August.\u00c2\u00a0 We can all watch as the sun’s heat penetrates to the eggs, warming some enough to create females, leaving others as males, and finally incubating them enough to pierce their eggshell and emerge into a brave new world where terrapins once again\u00c2\u00a0thrive on Outer Cape Cod.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Northernmost\u00c2\u00a0Diamondback Terrapin For more than a decade, Turtle Journal has teamed with local residents of Outer Cape Cod and partnered with Mass Audubon’s Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary to restore the region’s threatened population of northern diamondback terrapins (Malaclemys terrapin terrapin).\u00c2\u00a0 These elusive coastal turtles have\u00c2\u00a0thrived in\u00c2\u00a0the salt marsh systems of Cape Cod for centuries, if […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[23],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6464"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6464"}],"version-history":[{"count":31,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6464\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6518,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6464\/revisions\/6518"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6464"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6464"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.turtlejournal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6464"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}