Field season has been in full swing for over a month now. I have been tracking Blanding’s turtles from sunrise until sunset, driving from northwest to northeast, canoeing through lakes, marshes, swamps and fens and catching Snapping turtles, Painted turtles, Blanding’s turtles and fish. I just can’t get enough. The field season completely consumes my [...]
The weather cooperated and we were off into the swamp to release the first clutch of headstarted Blanding's turtles released this year. The transmitter weighs only 4 grams, and is attached simply with epoxy, onto the shell. The turtles don’t notice it is there, and yet it allows us to pinpoint their location. Here, I [...]
2013 promises to be a very exciting year for field work at Kawartha Turtle Trauma Centre. With huge gratitude to the TD Friends of the Environment Fund (TD FEF), our field work has been expanded this year. The work under the Species At Risk Stewardship Fund (SARSF) will be continued at our main field site [...]
This year has been an exciting time for the staff and volunteers at KTTC having had the opportunity get into the field and track some of our very own turtles. Though this year’s sample size of 10 turtles was small, they were able to provide us with critical information regarding their habitat preferences, behaviours and [...]
Part of this years field study took place on two of Ontario's highways. A road mortality survey was conducted to determine areas of increased turtle fatalities. The information gathered throughout the season will be used to help develop effective mitigation strategies and act to facilitate increased survival of our Ontario turtles. Although the [...]
Wildlife telemetry is a research method used to gather detailed information including wildlife habitat usage, home range size, mortality survivorship, etc. Using an antenna and receiver we are able to track and pinpoint the locations of the transmitters and the turtles they are attached to. Once the turtles are located they are measured, weighed and photographed. Notes are then [...]
This past May, Dr. Sue Carstairs and Fish and Wildlife Technologist Jackie Carnegie took the 10 newly equipped Blanding's juveniles to their new home. The release site was previously surveyed by Biologist Brennan Caverhill and Dr. Carstairs and determined to be ideal for the release and study of the Blanding’s turtles. The location [...]
With the aid of Biologist Christina Davy, Dr. Sue Carstairs and Fish and Wildlife Technologist Jackie Carnegie took 10 of the KTTC’s juvenile Blanding’s turtles and suited them up for their big day. These 10 Blanding's turtles would be equipped with radio transmitters on their shells and be the first of the KTTC’s head starting program to [...]
This year the Kawartha Turtle Trauma Centre has gone a step further in helping the turtles of Ontario on the road to recovery. In collaboration with the MNR, the Kawartha Turtle Trauma Centre has been fortunate enough to step out into the field. Over the next 3 years the KTTC will be conducting research in [...]
