Why spotted turtles are endangered

During this time, males are in an active, almost frantic pursuit of females; several males may be seen simultaneously chasing one female. When the female is ready, she lets one male catch her and allows him to climb onto her back. He grasps her shell with all four feet, positions his tail next to hers, and mates with her. In May, at the end of breeding season, females leave the breeding pools in search of nesting areas. They may wander a good distance and, unfortunately, many are killed crossing roadways.

An open site, such as a meadow, field, or the edge of a road, is most often chosen for nesting. Digging typically begins in the evening. The female digs the nest, measuring 2 inches deep and 2 inches in diameter, with her hind legs and feet. She rests when the cavity is complete, then begins to lay the eggs.

Only eggs are laid. The female then covers the eggs, as most turtles do, but goes one step further in disguising the nest. She smooths the dirt by dragging her body over the ground. In about 11 weeks, the 1-inch hatchlings emerge and head for wet, grassy areas in search of food and shelter. Sexual maturity is reached in years and most individuals live for at least 25 years. Some members of this species probably reach Diet consists of snails, worms, slugs, and spiders.

Daylight hours are spent eating and basking in the sun. In the evening, spotted turtles submerge and spend the night on the pond bottom.

The range extends from southern Maine and extreme southern Ontario west to Illinois and south to northern Florida in the east. Spotted turtles spend the majority of their time in slow moving, shallow waters with a soft bottom of marshy vegetation including sphagnum moss, cattails, and water lilies just to name a few. These shallow water ecosystems include bogs, marshes, swamps, ponds, streams, etc. They can occasionally be found swimming in slightly deeper waters.

This species occasionally wanders on land to nest. Various moist sites along wetlands are sometimes used for hibernation. Spotted turtles mainly feed in water.

Their diet may include vegetation matter such as aquatic grasses and green algae. Spotted turtles breed between March and May. Breeding can occur both on land and underwater. A female turtle usually has about 2 to 8 eggs in the nest. Females only lay eggs once or twice a year. The gestation period lasts about 70 to 80 days. The sex of the turtles in the eggs is dependent on temperatures in the surrounding environment. Higher temperatures normally produce females and lower temperatures normally produce males.

Although spotted turtles may be found throughout much New Jersey, there are still some threats to this species. Female spotted turtles reach maturity at 12 to 20 years of age sooner at more southerly latitudes. Reaching a certain size, rather than age, may determine maturity. Breeding can occur throughout the active season but is most common in the early spring.

Females store sperm until it is needed to fertilize their eggs. They lay from three to seven eggs in June in a nest dug in sand, soft soil or mossy areas, generally in a sunny location; warmth helps the eggs develop faster.

The temperature of the nest during incubation determines the sex of the offspring. Eggs hatch in September or October. Spotted turtles are most active in the early spring when they are mating and nesting. Unlike most turtles, spotted turtles aestivate spend the summer or dry season in a state of torpor to avoid hot dry weather. They feed only in the water, searching for snails, aquatic insects and other prey or vegetation at the edge of ponds and wetlands.

Spotted turtles can live to be over 50 years of age, and some individuals may get much older than this. A significant number of spotted turtle populations in the province have disappeared due to habitat loss draining or filling of wetlands , habitat degradation overgrazing, pollution and illegal collection for the pet industry.

Primarily because of the threat of poaching, authorities, researchers and conscientious citizens must not reveal the exact locations of spotted turtle populations. Other threats to this species include road mortality, predators, whose populations are artificially high due to human activity in the area, and the displacement of native vegetation by alien invasive species.

These acts offer protection to individuals and their habitat.