Submitted by Glen Estill, BPEG
Bruce Peninsula Environment Group’s (BPEG) September 7, 2022 meeting on the Turtle Tracker Program was held at The Rotary Hall in Lion’s Head. Guest Speaker Tanya Markvart of Parks Canada says “Volunteers Make the Difference”.
Tanya Markvart loves her job. She works in the area of public outreach and education at Bruce Peninsula National Park, specifically for the On the Road to Recovery project, which aims to protect and conserve herptiles (reptiles and amphibians) who live in the park and surrounding areas! The Bruce Peninsula has many herptile species, including the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake, Eastern Milksnake, Eastern Ribbonsnake, Snapping Turtle, Painted Turtle, and Spotted Salamander. Many of these species are at risk of disappearing from the wild.
One of the most rewarding parts of Tanya’s role is the Turtle Trackers Citizen Science program. Turtle Trackers are volunteers who help improve the survival rate of Snapping Turtles and Painted Turtles. Every spring, they protect turtle nests by installing turtle nest protection boxes within the park and surrounding areas. The boxes help to keep out scavengers like raccoons or skunks, improving the hatch rate and therefore the survival rate of the turtles. When a nest is found too close to a road, the eggs are gently removed and placed in an incubator, which keeps the eggs at 28 C, until they hatch about 45 days later. The hatchlings are weighed, measured, and released in the waterbody from which they came. And seriously, is there anything cuter than a baby turtle?
Turtles hit their reproductive years between the ages of 8-20, and while they can live a long time (70 years for a snapping turtle), it is estimated that less than 2% of turtle hatchlings survive into adulthood, so every turtle matters. Roadkill is one of the biggest causes of turtle mortality, so Turtle Trackers aim to make the difference for the survival of the species.
The Park has installed eight eco-passages on Emmett Lake Road, Cyprus Lake Road, and Dorcas Bay Road, along with 2.2 km of fencing that directs creatures to the safety of the eco passages, keeping them off the road. A study of the amount of roadkill in a given section of road helped guide the location of the eco-passages to road mortality hotspots. This maximized the impact of improved safety in crossing the road. Footage from trail cameras has revealed how much the passages are used, by snakes, turtles, small mammals, and even a family of Virginia Rails. Since 2018, over 7,000 crossings have been detected!
If you make a sighting of a herptile, you can log it using an app on your phone at https://inaturalist.ca/. The data is shared with resource managers and researchers to increase understanding about the abundance and distribution of many different species. Much like the Turtle Trackers, it is citizen science at work!
Tanya told us of an experience with a rattlesnake near her home. The rattlesnake was on the path in front of her. It warned her of its presence by rattling its tail. Tanya stepped out of the way, and talked to the snake, and in due course, the snake resumed its movement right past her and down the path. Reptile whisperer. It’s really a thing!
No wonder Tanya loves her job.
Information on the Road to Recovery program can be found at https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/on/bruce/nature/conservation/rtr
BPEG’s next event will be hosting an All Candidates Meeting (with a focus on Climate and Environmental Issues) on September 27 at 7 p.m. at the Bethel Evangelical Missionary Church, 18 Ferndale Rd, Lion’s Head,
Everyone is invited to attend.
