A baby snapping turtle: still legal to harvest for food.
The first step in introducing any kind of positive change is usually research. Before a problem can be fixed, it needs to be understood. Here are just a few examples of the field research taking place at turtle rescue and rehabilitation centers around the world.
Ecopassages
In North America and around the world, many problems occur when turtles try to cross roads. Signs that alert drivers to busy turtle crossing areas, and education to teach the public how to avoid turtles certainly help to prevent injuries and fatalities, but there’s an even better solution: ecopassages. An ecopassage provides turtles with an alternative to a road crossing, such as an existing culvert under the road. “Exclusion fences” can be put up to help guide turtles to the culverts and away from danger. Much work is being done to establish the areas where ecopassages would be most effective, based on the information gathered when turtles are admitted to rehabilitation centers, and on ongoing mortality surveys.
The Plight of the Snapping Turtle
In 2011, the Ontario Turtle Trauma Centre partnered with the David Suzuki Foundation and Ontario Nature to help produce a report on the plight of the snapping turtle in Ontario. Although the snapping turtle is listed as a species of concern in the province, it is still legal to harvest these turtles for food. The OTCC conducted a study evaluating the levels of harmful mercury and PCB in turtle tissue. If people can’t be convinced to stop hunting turtles for the turtle’s sake, perhaps they will stop if they learn that snapping turtles are not safe to eat!
The Effects of Global Warming
Research is being carried out to determine the potential effects of global warming on turtle hatching. Because many species have temperature-dependent sex determination, a variation in climate conditions can affect the sex produced. A study has shown that the Colombian endemic river turtle, for example, has a limited ability to adapt to temperature change, and so is very vulnerable.
