scholarly journals ICE NUCLEI IN SOIL COMPROMISE COLD HARDINESS OF HATCHLING PAINTED TURTLES (CHRYSEMYS PICTA)

Ecology ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. 346-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon P. Costanzo ◽  
Jacqueline D. Litzgus ◽  
John B. Iverson ◽  
Richard E. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Cold Hardiness ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
Painted Turtles ◽  
Ice Nuclei

scholarly journals Ice Nuclei in Soil Compromise Cold Hardiness of Hatchling Painted Turtles (Chrysemys picta)

Ecology ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. 346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon P. Costanzo ◽  
Jacqueline D. Litzgus ◽  
John B. Iverson ◽  
Richard E. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Cold Hardiness ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
Painted Turtles ◽  
Ice Nuclei

Soil hydric characteristics and environmental ice nuclei influence supercooling capacity of hatchling painted turtles Chrysemys picta.

1998 ◽  
Vol 201 (22) ◽  
pp. 3105-3112 ◽  
Author(s):  
J P Costanzo ◽  
J D Litzgus ◽  
J B Iverson ◽  
R E Lee
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Frozen Soil ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
Physical Contact ◽  
Differential Mortality ◽  
Late Winter ◽  
Painted Turtles ◽  
Ice Nuclei ◽  
Native Soil ◽  
Inoculative Freezing

Hatchling painted turtles (Chrysemys picta) hibernate in their shallow natal nests where temperatures occasionally fall below -10 C during cold winters. Because the thermal limit of freeze tolerance in this species is approximately -4 C, hatchlings rely on supercooling to survive exposure to extreme cold. We investigated the influence of environmental ice nuclei on susceptibility to inoculative freezing in hatchling C. picta indigenous to the Sandhills of west-central Nebraska. In the absence of external ice nuclei, hatchlings cooled to -14.6 1.9 C (mean s.e.m.; N=5) before spontaneously freezing. Supercooling capacity varied markedly among turtles cooled in physical contact with sandy soil collected from nesting locales or samples of the native soil to which water-binding agents (clay or peat) had been added, despite the fact that all substrata contained the same amount of moisture (7.5 % moisture, w/w). The temperature of crystallization (Tc) of turtles exposed to frozen native soil was -1.6 0.4 C (N=5), whereas turtles exposed to frozen soil/clay and soil/peat mixtures supercooled extensively (mean Tc values approximately -13 C). Hatchlings cooled in contact with drier (less than or equal to 4 % moisture) native soil also supercooled extensively. Thus, inoculative freezing is promoted by exposure to sandy soils containing abundant moisture and little clay or organic matter. Soil collected at turtle nesting locales in mid and late winter contained variable amounts of moisture (4-15 % w/w) and organic matter (1-3 % w/w). In addition to ice, the soil at turtle nesting locales may harbor inorganic and organic ice nuclei that may also seed the freezing of hatchlings. Bulk samples of native soil, which were autoclaved to destroy any organic nuclei, nucleated aqueous solutions at approximately -7 C (Tc range -6.1 to -8.2 C). Non-autoclaved samples contained water-extractable, presumably organic, ice nuclei (Tc range -4.4 to -5.3 C). Ice nuclei of both classes varied in potency among turtle nesting locales. Interaction with ice nuclei in the winter microenvironment determines whether hatchling C. picta remain supercooled or freeze and may ultimately account for differential mortality in nests at a given locale and for variation in winter survival rates among populations.

Seasonal changes in physiology and development of cold hardiness in the hatchling painted turtle Chrysemys picta

2000 ◽  
Vol 203 (22) ◽  
pp. 3459-3470 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.P. Costanzo ◽  
J.D. Litzgus ◽  
J.B. Iverson ◽  
R.E. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Seasonal Changes ◽  
Cold Hardiness ◽  
Dry Mass ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
Chelydra Serpentina ◽  
Ice Nuclei ◽  
Mean Temperature ◽  
Inoculative Freezing ◽  
Freeze Tolerant ◽  
Cold Hardy

Hatchling painted turtles (Chrysemys picta) commonly hibernate in shallow, natal nests where winter temperatures may fall below −10 degrees C. Although hatchlings are moderately freeze-tolerant, they apparently rely on supercooling to survive exposure to severe cold. We investigated seasonal changes in physiology and in the development of supercooling capacity and resistance to inoculative freezing in hatchling Chrysemys picta exposed in the laboratory to temperatures that decreased from 22 to 4 degrees C over a 5.5 month period. For comparison, we also studied hatchling snapping turtles (Chelydra serpentina), a less cold-hardy species that usually overwinters under water. Although Chrysemys picta and Chelydra serpentina differed in some physiological responses, both species lost dry mass, catabolized lipid and tended to gain body water during the acclimation regimen. Recently hatched, 22 degrees C-acclimated Chrysemys picta supercooled only modestly (mean temperature of crystallization −6.3+/−0.2 degrees C; N=6) and were susceptible to inoculation by ice nuclei in a frozen substratum (mean temperature of crystallization −1.1+/−0.1 degrees C; N=6) (means +/− s.e.m.). In contrast, cold-acclimated turtles exhibited pronounced capacities for supercooling and resistance to inoculative freezing. The development of cold hardiness reflected the elimination or deactivation of potent endogenous ice nuclei and an elevation of blood osmolality that was due primarily to the retention of urea, but was not associated with accumulation of the polyols, sugars or amino acids commonly found in the cryoprotection systems of other animals. Also, Chrysemys picta (and Chelydra serpentina) lacked both antifreeze proteins and ice-nucleating proteins, which are used by some animals to promote supercooling and to initiate freezing at the high temperatures conducive to freezing survival, respectively.

Temporal Variation in Growth Rate and Age at Maturity of Male Painted Turtles, Chrysemys picta

1993 ◽  
Vol 130 (2) ◽  
pp. 314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nat B. Frazer ◽  
Judith L. Greene ◽  
J. Whitfield Gibbons
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Temporal Variation ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
Age At Maturity ◽  
Painted Turtles

Helminths of Chrysemys picta belli in Manitoba including Polystomoides pauli sp.n. (Monogenea: Polystomatidae)

1979 ◽  
Vol 57 (5) ◽  
pp. 1046-1051 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shannon F. Timmers ◽  
Paul D. Lewis Jr.
Keyword(s):  
Oral Mucosa ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
First Report ◽  
Painted Turtles ◽  
Species Inquirendae

One new monogenean is described and 11 other helminths are reported from painted turtles from eastern Manitoba. Polystomoides pauli sp.n. from the host's oral mucosa most closely resembles P. coronatum (Leidy) and P. oris Paul. It differs from the former in having more and larger genital coronet spines, and possession of anterior cecal diverticula, and from the latter in size, larger number of genital coronet spines, and possession of great hooks with entire, not bifid, roots. Price's emendation of P. coronatum to include five species he held to be its synonyms is rejected; and the five species, P. opacum Stunkard, P. megacotyle Stunkard, P. microcotyle Stunkard, P. albicollis MacCallum, and P. digitatum MacCallum are designated species inquirendae. Polystomoides coronatum is restricted to the redescription given for it by Stunkard. The trematodes Crepidostomum sp., Eustomos chelydrae, Microphallus opacus, Protenes angustus, Spirorchis parvus, S. scripta, Telorchis attenuatus, and T. corti, the cestode Proteocephalus sp., and the nematodes Serpinema trispinosa and Spiroxys contortus are reported from Chrysemys picta belli. Except for P. angustus, all represent first reports from turtles in Canada. This is the first report of E. chelydrae from the host stomach, and the second report of M. opacus from naturally infected turtles.

Patterns and Possible Significance of Water Exchange by Flexible-Shelled Eggs of Painted Turtles (Chrysemys picta)

1981 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 165-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary C. Packard ◽  
Mary J. Packard ◽  
Thomas J. Boardman
Keyword(s):  
Water Exchange ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
Painted Turtles

A compass without a map: tortuosity and orientation of eastern painted turtles (Chrysemys picta picta) released in unfamiliar territory

2006 ◽  
Vol 84 (8) ◽  
pp. 1129-1137 ◽  
Author(s):  
I.R. Caldwell ◽  
V.O. Nams
Keyword(s):  
Fractal Dimension ◽  
Random Walk ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Chrysemys Picta ◽  
Reference Stimulus ◽  
Correlated Random Walk ◽  
Specific Mechanism ◽  
Minimal Time ◽  
Painted Turtles

Orientation mechanisms allow animals to spend minimal time in hostile areas while reaching needed resources. Identification of the specific mechanism used by an animal can be difficult, but examining an animal's path in familiar and unfamiliar areas can provide clues to the type of mechanism in use. Semiaquatic turtles are known to use a homing mechanism in familiar territory to locate their home lake while on land, but little is known about their ability to locate habitat in unfamiliar territory. We tested the tortuosity and orientation of 60 eastern painted turtles ( Chrysemys picta picta (Schneider, 1783)). We released turtles at 20 release points located at five distances and in two directions from two unfamiliar lakes. Turtle trails were quite straight (fractal dimension between 1.1 and 1.025) but were not oriented towards water from any distance (V-test; u < 0.72; P > 0.1). Turtles maintained their initially chosen direction but either could not detect water or were not motivated to reach it. Furthermore, paths were straighter at larger spatial scales than at smaller spatial scales, which could not have occurred if the turtles had been using a correlated random walk. Turtles must therefore be using a reference stimulus for navigation even in unfamiliar areas.

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