New road signs to help Maine’s endangered turtles

The Blanding's turtle is among the species that Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and The Nature Conservancy is working to protect by posting warning signs by turtle crossing hot spots in southern Maine.

New animal-crossing signs are popping up along the roads of York County, and in place of the typical silhouettes of deer and moose is the shape of a turtle.
“Turtles look very much today as they have for 200 million years,” said Phillip deMaynadier, biologist with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife. “They survived the mass extinction that took out the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. Very few predators can break a turtle shell — until the car came along.”
State biologists are installing the yellow warning signs in strategic locations in Wells, South Berwick and York, alerting motorists to slow down and watch for jaywalking turtles.
“Turtles do what they’ve always done when they encounter a threat of a predator,” deMaynadier said. “When they crawl out in the road and feel the vibration of a car — a threat — they pull into their shell and stop. And that just doesn’t work with a car.”
“Turtles aren’t going to change their behavior quickly enough to adapt to cars,” he continued. “So we’re trying to change driver behavior to accommodate turtles.”
The DIF&W, in collaboration with The Nature Conservancy, is asking motorists to be on the lookout for turtles in roadways and to slow down upon spotting a new turtle crossing sign. Drivers who come across a turtle in the road and want to help are asked to pull over and, if it is safe to do so, move the turtle to the side of the road in the direction it was headed.
“The only turtle that can pose some risk to you if you pick it up is a snapping turtle,” deMaynadier said. “They’re called a snapping turtles for a reason.”
To shoo a snapping turtle from the road, he suggests walking slowly behind it.
The turtle crossing signs will only be posted during turtle nesting season, May-July, when Maine’s female turtles undertake risky overland forays to reach nesting areas. Biologists hope this will maximize the signs’ impact and reduce “sign fatigue,” a local driver’s tendency to ignore a sign that is displayed year round.
So far, turtle crossing signs have been specifically located to reduce vehicle collisions with two of the state’s rarest turtle species — the spotted turtle and Blanding’s turtle.
“The whole issue of turtle road mortality is pretty important statewide for all the species, it’s just that our resources as an agency are limited, so for now, we’re focusing on the endangered species,” deMaynadier said. “We envision expanding that effort throughout the state for not just endangered turtles, but also for other species in areas where there are high rates of documented mortality.”
Blanding’s and spotted turtles, both protected under Maine’s Endangered Species Act, can be easily identified.
The Blanding’s turtle has a long, bright yellow neck and a high-domed shell that curves out at the edges (often described as being helmet-shaped). It is one of the two species of turtles in Maine that has the ability to close itself into its shell as protection from predators, the other being the box turtle.
Many consider the spotted turtle to be Maine’s most attractive turtle, with its telltale orange polka dots decorating a smooth black shell and legs that sport bright orange, pink or reddish scales.
“They’re very popular in the pet trade, which is another stressor,” deMaynadier said. “They’re collected illegally.”
Both species have several things working against them in the modern day world.
“Spotted and Blanding’s turtles use vernal pools and pocket swamps and small shrub wetlands that tend to fall through the cracks of regulatory protection, so they’re often degraded or destroyed,” deMaynadier said.
And they move between these small wetlands throughout the year, causing them to cross roads.
In 2006, radio transmitters were placed of nearly 100 Blanding’s and spotted turtles in southern Maine in a study to learn how these turtles move between wetland habitats. The cooperative study by the University of Maine’s Wildlife Ecology Department and DIF&W was led by UMaine doctoral student Fred Beaudry, and the data gathered was used to identify the road crossing hot spots where the signs are being erected.
Though most abundant in southern York County, these two species have been seen living farther north — Blanding’s turtles as far as southern Androscoggin County, and spotted turtles as far as western Hancock County.
“A lot of species reach the end of their range in southern Maine,” said deMaynadier. “It’s actually a conservation conundrum.”
Southern Maine has the highest species diversity of plants and animals in the state, as well as the highest concentration of endangered and threatened species. This poses a challenge for conservationists because southern Maine also has the highest human population density and traffic volumes in the state, deMaynadier said.
Based on recent population modeling, researchers believe that if people are responsible for an increase of just 2-3 percent in the natural mortality rate of these endangered turtles (for example, by causing road mortality), the local population will crash over time.
Both Blanding’s and spotted turtles are extremely long-lived.
“They don’t become sexually mature until they’re teenagers — not unlike humans,” deMaynadier said. “But unlike humans, they experience very low reproductive success and very high nest mortality. The only way they can balance that out is very high adult survivorship, so they can try and try and try again … a Blanding’s can live to be able 75 years old or so, and in that 75 years, it may only replace itself with one or two adult offspring.”
The DIF&W shares turtle population data with land trusts, landowners and towns to help identify parcels of high conservation value.
“A lot of land that has been conserved in southern Maine has been done specifically with turtle conservation in mind,

Endangered Turtles of Maine

The painted turtle
(Chrysemys picta) is the most widespread native turtle of North America. It lives in slow-moving fresh waters, from southern Canada to Louisiana and northern Mexico, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The turtle is the only species of the genus Chrysemys, which is part of the pond turtle family Emydidae. Fossils show that the painted turtle existed 15 million years ago. Four regionally based subspecies (the eastern, midland, southern, and western) evolved during the last ice age.
The adult painted turtle female is 10–25 cm (4–10 in) long; the male is smaller. The turtle's top shell is dark and smooth, without a ridge. Its skin is olive to black with red, orange, or yellow stripes on its extremities. The subspecies can be distinguished by their shells: the eastern has straight-aligned top shell segments; the midland has a large gray mark on the bottom shell; the southern has a red line on the top shell; the western has a red pattern on the bottom shell.
The turtle eats aquatic vegetation, algae, and small water creatures including insects, crustaceans, and fish. Although they are frequently consumed as eggs or hatchlings by rodents, canines, and snakes, the adult turtles' hard shells protect them from most predators. Reliant on warmth from its surroundings, the painted turtle is active only during the day when it basks for hours on logs or rocks. During winter, the turtle hibernates, usually in the mud at the bottom of water bodies. The turtles mate in spring and autumn. Females dig nests on land and lay eggs between late spring and mid-summer. Hatched turtles grow until sexual maturity: 2–9 years for males, 6–16 for females.
In the traditional tales of Algonquian tribes, the colorful turtle played the part of a trickster. In modern times, four U.S. states have named the painted turtle their official reptile. While habitat loss and road killings have reduced the turtle's population, its ability to live in human-disturbed settings has helped it remain the most abundant turtle in North America. Adults in the wild can live for more than 55 years.

Caring for your turtle is relatively easy once the basics are established. Dispel the thoughts of getting a turtle and putting it in a bowl of water with a rock. Those little "Turtle Ponds" you can still find in pet stores, are completely inadequate and have even been dubbed by experienced keepers as "Death Bowls". Turtles require more than a small, simple container to ensure proper health and longevity. Heating, lighting, temperature control, filtration - all play an important role in the health and happiness of your turtle. Even a large aquarium, filled to the top with water is not meeting their needs, as they need an area to get out of the water and get completely dry. Also toss out the ideas that turtles can survive on hot dogs, cat food and shrimp treats. Their diets are a highly evolved science, of which we are only beginning to unlock and understand. Various species have specific feeding needs, so the exact dietary requirement of your turtle will need to be researched (Care Sheets are a great assistance in determining what is needed). There are numerous prepared foods on the market, but not all are quality. You don't need to be a nutritionist to understand what is required, but you do need to understand what to look for. Sounds sophisticated, but it's all simple once you understand the reasons why and why not to put things on the menu. The lamp on the desk or the overhead light in the room is not going to meet the requirements of your turtle. They need special lighting which will allow them to perform bodily functions that regular lighting does not do. Room temperature ok? Guess again. Turtles are ectothermic, what used to be called "cold blooded". This means that they do not generate their own body heat. They rely on the sun to get warm and the water to cool down. You will need to ensure that their air temps, basking temps and water temps are within the acceptable guidelines. This will not only ensure their health, but will give them a more natural feeling about their habitat and allow them to act naturally. Turtles are not like dogs and cats - they do NOT enjoy going for walks and being handled. It is key to remember this as some keepers allow their turtles to walk around on their floors, they take them outside for walks or they hold them and carry them around and some even take them to the pet stores as they would their dog. This is not something your turtle will enjoy, nor is it good for them. This causes unnecessary stress and could will eventually lead to health problems. Leave them in their habitat and watch them swim, eat, bask and move about in their home which you have provided. They will be much happier and so will you.


	Feeding your turtles seems to be the most complex aspect of keeping them healthy and active. A simple task yet requiring some planning and structure, based on the species that you are keeping. Turtles are usually opportunistic feeders. In other words, they grab it when they can because they really aren't sure when they might get the chance to eat again. Do not be fooled---turtles will learn to recognize you and any food containers you have. They will quickly have you trained! Overfeeding is one of the most common mistakes in captive care. Keep in mind that they are not always hungry...but they are always looking for a meal because it's how they survive in the wild. They don't know that you are going to feed them routinely, so keep a regular schedule and try not to veer from it. As far as a diet goes, you want something high in calcium yet low in phosphorus. Stay away from fatty foods and those with a high carbohydrate and protein content unless the turtle is a strict carnivore. Don't over-feed or under-feed anything