MTRI - Projects - Wetland - Blanding's Turtle Nest Monitoring
The Mersey Tobeatic Research Institute (MTRI) is a non-profit co-operative with a mandate to advance collaborative research, monitoring, and management that promotes sustainable use of natural resources in southwestern Nova Scotia.
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What's the story on Blanding's turtles?
Blanding’s turtles in Nova Scotia exist in three small populations on the Mersey and Medway watersheds and have been listed as Endangered under both the federal Species at Risk Act and the Nova Scotia Endangered Species Act. One of the concerns for this long lived (80+ years), slow maturing (20+ years) species is the lack of young adults in the population. This is of particular concern in the population at Kejimkujik where only 5 young known females have been recorded during the last decade. Rates of predation of unprotected nests are variable but can reach 100%. Raccoons are the primary nest predators and their populations may be unusually high in human inhabited areas (e.g. campgrounds and communities). An annual volunteer-based nest protection program was established in Kejimkujik and later expanded to populations outside the park to engage the public in helping to protect and care for turtle nests.
Program objectives
- To protect Blanding’s turtle nests from predation to improve recruitment into the populations.
- To provide an opportunity for volunteers to engage in Species at Risk recovery.
- To collect long-term data on female survivorship, clutch size, hatching success, and site fidelity.
- To reduce threats to females and their hatchlings by enhancing nest site habitat and turtle awareness near roads.
Methods
Nest Protection (June)
- Known nesting sites were monitored on a nightly basis during nesting season. Individual turtles were radio tracked to locate new nesting sites.
- At 7:30pm, volunteers and researchers walked each site watching for turtles. Observers watched females go through the nesting process and recorded data related to behaviour and movements, weather, timing of activities, and clutch size.
- Once a nest was completed and the female had left the site, volunteers covered the nest with a wire mesh cage and secured it with large rocks to protect the nest from predation.
Nest Monitoring (September – October)
- Nests were monitored periodically until the first nest emerged and then were monitored daily by volunteers and researchers who marked, measured, weighed and released hatchlings at the nest site.
Results
Nest Protection (June)
- In 2009, volunteers and researchers in Kejimkujik located a record 25 Blanding’s turtle nests. Of these, eggs from 12 nests were collected for incubation, wich produced 110 hatchling turtles.
- Twelve nests were protected at McGowan Lake and Pleasant River, with help from volunteers, researchers and community members.
Nest Monitoring (September - October)
- A total of 129 hatchlings emerged in total in 2009.
- A total of 53 hatchlings emerged from the 13 nests in Kejimkujik. Volunteers also helped to excavate eggs from nests that were overdue.
- At McGowan Lake, 44 hatchlings emerged from the protected nests.
- In Pleasant River, 32 hatchlings emergeged from volunteer-monitored protected nests.
Years of Data
- Ongoing project since 1989 in Kejimkujik
- Ongoing project since 2000 at McGowan Lake
- Ongoing project since 2002 at Plesant River
Partners
- Ongoing project since 1989 in Kejimkujik
- Ongoing project since 2000 at McGowan Lake
- Ongoing project since 2002 at Plesant River