scholarly journals Survey methodology for the detection of Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta)

2013 ◽  
Vol 127 (3) ◽  
pp. 216 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Flanagan ◽  
Vanessa Roy-McDougall ◽  
Graham Forbes ◽  
Glen Forbes
Keyword(s):  
Survey Methodology ◽  
Population Monitoring ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Canadian Forces ◽  
Glyptemys Insculpta ◽  
Environmental Impact Assessments ◽  
Terrestrial Environments ◽  
Wood Turtles ◽  
Significant Factors ◽  
Wood Turtle

Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) are difficult to survey because their use of aquatic and terrestrial environments varies spatio-temporally. Existing survey methodology is highly variable and typically involves searching for Wood Turtles within water and on land 0 to >20 m from the shoreline from spring to autumn. The mobility of Wood Turtles suggests that detection is likely influenced by distance surveyed from water and the amount of vegetation, which varies by season. To determine an ideal survey methodology for the Wood Turtle, we recorded distances from a waterway of 31 radio-tagged turtles at Canadian Forces Base, Gagetown, New Brunswick, in 2003 and 2004. Ordinal logistic regression was used to determine the probability of finding male or female Wood Turtles with increasing distance from water at different times of day or season. Sex and time of day were not significant factors in detecting Wood Turtles. Season was a significant factor, with highest probability (69%) of finding Wood Turtles at a distance of 0–10 m of a waterway up to July 1 (corresponding to pre-nesting and nesting periods), compared to probabilities of <10% for any 10-m distance between 10 m and 50 m from a waterway. After July 1, the highest detection probability (50%) was at distances greater than 50 m from a waterway. We recommend that Wood Turtle surveys for environmental impact assessments and population monitoring be conducted on warm days (i.e., 10–25°C) within 10 m of waterways up to July 1.

scholarly journals GPS Technology for Semi-Aquatic Turtle Research

Diversity ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madaline Cochrane ◽  
Donald Brown ◽  
Ron Moen
Keyword(s):  
Success Rate ◽  
Spatial Ecology ◽  
Moving Average ◽  
Directional Bias ◽  
Daily Movement ◽  
Glyptemys Insculpta ◽  
Closed Canopy ◽  
Hiding Behavior ◽  
Wood Turtles ◽  
Wood Turtle

Global positioning system (GPS) telemetry units are now small enough to be deployed on terrestrial and semi-aquatic turtles. Many of these GPS units use snapshot technology which collects raw satellite and timestamp data during brief periods of data recording to minimize size. We evaluated locations from snapshot GPS units in stationary tests and on wood turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) in northeastern Minnesota. Stationary GPS units were placed in wood turtle habitat to evaluate location accuracy, fix success rate, and directional bias. The GPS fix success rate and accuracy were reduced in closed canopy conditions and when the stationary GPS unit was placed under a log to simulate wood turtle hiding behavior. We removed GPS location outliers and used a moving average calculation to reduce mean location error in stationary tests from 27 m (SD = 38) to 10 m (SD = 8). We then deployed GPS units and temperature loggers on wood turtles and collected 122,657 GPS locations and 242,781 temperature readings from 26 turtles from May to September 2015 and 2016. Location outliers accounted for 12% of locations when the GPS receiver was on a turtle. We classified each wood turtle location based on the GPS location and by comparing temperature profiles from river, sun, and shaded locations to the temperature logger on the turtle. We estimated that wood turtles were on land 68% (SD = 12) of the time from May to September. The fix success rate for land locations was 38% (SD = 9), indicating that wood turtles often use habitats with obstructed views of the sky. Mean net daily movement was 55 m (SD = 192). Our results demonstrate that snapshot GPS units and temperature loggers provide fine-scale GPS data useful in describing spatial ecology and habitat use of semi-aquatic turtles.

scholarly journals The Wood Turtle, Glyptemys insculpta, at River Denys: A Second Population for Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia

2003 ◽  
Vol 117 (3) ◽  
pp. 415
Author(s):  
Andreas Gräf ◽  
John Gilhen ◽  
Jill D. Adams
Keyword(s):  
Nova Scotia ◽  
Breeding Population ◽  
Adult Males ◽  
Cape Breton Island ◽  
Glyptemys Insculpta ◽  
Cape Breton ◽  
Nesting Site ◽  
Egg Shells ◽  
Wood Turtles ◽  
Wood Turtle

The Wood Turtle, Glyptemys insculpta, population at River Denys, Inverness County, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, was unknown except locally until listed in a provincial survey in 1995. Subsequently a hatchling was photographed at McLennan Brook on 17 September 1999, and three adult males were photographed between 14 and 19 September 2000. Two adult females were photographed at South Side River Denys on 18 June 2001. An excavated nest and empty egg shells were located at the same time on a stony-gravel bank at the outflow of McLennan Brook, and one sub-adult male was found at the edge of a hay field on 19 August 2001. Additional observations made of a nesting site and five basking sites, mostly along the main branch of River Denys, provide further evidence that a breeding population of Wood Turtles exists in River Denys watershed.

Characterizing Wood Turtle (Glyptemys insculpta) Populations at the Northwestern Periphery of the Species' Range in Canada

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 571-586
Author(s):  
Jennifer Cross ◽  
Robert Cross ◽  
Derek Chartrand ◽  
Dean G. Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Species Range ◽  
Glyptemys Insculpta ◽  
Wood Turtle

Geographic Variation in Somatic Growth Rate of Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta)

Copeia ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 106 (3) ◽  
pp. 477-484
Author(s):  
Kelsey A. Marchand ◽  
Geoffrey N. Hughes ◽  
Jacqueline D. Litzgus
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Geographic Variation ◽  
Somatic Growth ◽  
Somatic Growth Rate ◽  
Glyptemys Insculpta ◽  
Wood Turtles

scholarly journals Effects of Stochastic Flood Disturbance on Adult Wood Turtles, Glyptemys insculpta, in Massachusetts

2009 ◽  
Vol 123 (4) ◽  
pp. 313 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael T. Jones ◽  
Paul R. Sievert
Keyword(s):  
Average Rate ◽  
Population Connectivity ◽  
Flood Frequency ◽  
Flood Disturbance ◽  
Franklin County ◽  
Present Evidence ◽  
Glyptemys Insculpta ◽  
Riparian System ◽  
Flood Intensity ◽  
Wood Turtles

The homing ability of non-marine turtles has been studied in a variety of taxa, and many species appear to be capable of short-range homing on the scale of several hundred meters or a few kilometers following experimental displacement. However, the behavioral response of turtles following a naturally caused displacement has seldom been reported. In this paper, we describe the effect of displacement ranging from 1.4 to 16.8 km (average = 4.8 km) by severe floods in a stream system in Massachusetts. We radio-tracked 38 adult Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) at five separate sites in Franklin County, Massachusetts, for periods ranging from one to four activity seasons and documented the displacement of a total of 12 Wood Turtles during seven floods between 2004 and 2008. Based on the average rate of displacement per flood and annual flood frequency, we estimate that, during our study, floods displaced over 40% of this Wood Turtle subpopulation annually. We present evidence that displacement results in elevated mortality rates and that displaced Wood Turtles mate and nest in the year following displacement at rates well below average; on a longer time scale, however, displacement by flooding may be an important mechanism of population connectivity in some areas. We also present evidence that most Wood Turtles avoid stream segments with stream gradient steeper than 1%; this may in part reflect an adaptation to avoid severe floods. Regional models and empirical data from stream gages suggest that flood intensity may currently be on an increasing trend. Conversion of upland from forest and fields to impervious surfaces and hardening of upstream riverbanks may have exacerbated recent flooding and decreased the resiliency of the riparian system to increased precipitation.

Nest-Site Selection by Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) in a Thermally Limited Environment

2009 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 321-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoffrey N. Hughes ◽  
William F. Greaves ◽  
Jacqueline D. Litzgus
Keyword(s):  
Site Selection ◽  
Nest Site ◽  
Nest Site Selection ◽  
Glyptemys Insculpta ◽  
Wood Turtles

Home range and movements of a wood turtle (Clemmys insculpta) population at the northern limit of its range

2002 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 402-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Arvisais ◽  
J -C Bourgeois ◽  
E Lévesque ◽  
C Daigle ◽  
D Masse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Site Fidelity ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Buffer Strips ◽  
Northern Limit ◽  
Seasonal Movements ◽  
Active Season ◽  
Wood Turtles ◽  
Wood Turtle

We studied the home ranges and seasonal movements of 20 wood turtles (Clemmys insculpta) living near the northern limit of their distribution in the Mauricie region, Quebec, Canada. We found average home-range areas of 28.3 ha. Wood turtles showed site fidelity; there was an average overlap of 60.7% in their home ranges, and 88.8% of the home-range centroids were not significantly different for the 2 years of the study. The home ranges were larger than those reported from studies in more southerly locations, leading us to hypothesize larger home-range territories with increasing latitude. Our analyses indicate that turtle movements could be grouped into four distinct activity periods during the active season: the prenesting, nesting, postnesting, and prehibernation periods. We found that wood turtles were closely associated with streams. Based on the importance of this habitat for the species, we suggest the establishment of protected buffer strips along streams used by wood turtles.

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