Blanding’s Turtle Conservation | Zoo New England (original) (raw)

Through our award-winning Hatchling and Turtle Conservation through Headstarting (HATCH) program, we “headstart” hatchlings each year, caring for them indoors from the early autumn until May or June. During this headstarting period, the young Blanding’s turtles grow very quickly, so much so that by their release at about 9 months of age, our headstarted turtles are about the same size as wild 3 - 4 year olds. This boost in early growth rate leaves the turtles much better protected from predators. Through radiotracking hundreds of young turtles after their release, we estimate that at Great Meadows, for example, by protecting turtle nests and headstarting some of the young, our efforts give each Blanding’s turtle egg and hatchling about a 30 times better chance of surviving to reach adulthood.

As the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife has demonstrated through their long-running headstarting program for the endangered northern red-bellied cooter turtle, headstarting efforts, when carefully managed, can be a vital tool in the recovery of rare turtle species. It is, however, just one management tool and one that requires a great deal of effort.

Our goal with Blanding’s turtles and all the rare species we support is to help in the recovery of populations that can be sustained in the future with as little ongoing human intervention as possible. Towards that end, we help determine what habitats are most critical to the populations that we work with and, where feasible, work to create or enhance suitable habitats. At the same time, our conservation efforts (led by the huge number of people directly involved in our headstarting programs) help to form knowledgeable and engaged communities of people who are the most critical conservation resource. Our children and future generations have the power to determine whether or not Blanding’s turtles and other wildlife thrive and brighten the world of future New Englanders in the decades to come.