Turtle News Archive
The smallest turtles in North America, bog turtles were federally listed as a threatened species in 1997. Threats facing bog turtles include habitat loss due to development, invasive species and natural succession. Six newly-hatched green sea turtles will soon journey from Delaware to North Carolina for eventual release into ocean. Maryland landowners continue working with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to preserve and restore sections of their land for bog turtles. The smallest turtles in North America, bog turtles were federally listed as a threatened species in 1997. Threats facing bog turtles include habitat loss due to development, invasive species and natural succession. Six newly-hatched green sea turtles will soon journey from Delaware to North Carolina for eventual release into ocean. Maryland landowners continue working with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to preserve and restore sections of their land for bog turtles. Invasive plants are taking over some wetlands in New Jersey that provide homes to bog turtles. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and partners are working to eradicate these, including common reed, porcelain berry and Japanese knotweed. Baltimore’s National Aquarium recently released three endangered Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles into the Chesapeake Bay at Point Lookout State Park in Scotland, Md. The turtles came to the aquarium this winter from the New England Aquarium after they were found stranded along Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The September Year of the Turtle newsletter features this Northeast Region site! Check out page 11. The Service’s Chesapeake Bay Field Office is working with private landowners and other partners to restore and protect bog turtle habitat. Since 1997, various habitat restoration techniques have been completed at 17 wetlands on private lands in Maryland totaling more than 150 acres. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service established the Cherry Valley National Wildlife Refuge in northeastern Pennsylvania in 2010, in part, to protect the federally threatened bog turtle. Climate change, however, could amplify existing threats to the turtle's fragile habitat.
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Last updated:
February 3, 2012
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