Community Science Turtle guardians

Article by John Challis

The languid, prehistoric personality of turtles endears them to everyone. Turtles, however, may not think much of humans. Loss of wetland habitat, road casualties and landscaped yards allow predators to dig up eggs. All the above have resulted in a serious decline in turtle populations.

Six of Ontario’s eight species of turtle are native to Muskoka – midland painted turtle, snapping turtle, map turtle, Blanding’s turtle, spotted turtle and musk turtle. They are all listed as species at risk, and Blanding’s and spotted turtles are listed as threatened and endangered, respectively.

Keeping tabs on their well-being is a priority but the wetlands, which make up turtle habitat in Muskoka, are vast. There are only so many people with the science background to do the monitoring. We all can help, though, and that’s where community science, also known as citizen science, comes in.

National Geographic defines community science as “participating in projects in which volunteers and scientists work together to answer real-world questions.” Volunteers are recruited and trained to collect data which then helps clear up the puzzle the scientists are trying to work through. The more people providing observations, the greater the value of the information. Community scientists are the cogs and gears of some of the largest research efforts around.

Muskoka Conservancy relies heavily on community science observations. Each of the conservancy’s 37 nature reserves and 15 conservation easements has a group of volunteers who conduct regular review of their plant and animal inventories. On properties that contain wetlands, monitoring focuses on reptiles and amphibians, says conservation co-ordinator Amanda Porter.

“It is really important for us to find out which of those species are using our protected lands, and ensure we are maintaining that habitat for them so that they can continue to thrive for years to come,” Porter says.

Saving Turtles At Risk Today (START) needs community science for its work, too. START is a partnership created in 2013 between Scales Nature Park, Georgian Bay Turtle Hospital, Laurentian University, Trent University and the Canadian Wildlife Federation. The program first began in Muskoka and central Ontario, with volunteers and professionals touring wetlands to collect estimates of turtle populations. Training is offered for community scientists, either through a half-day training workshop or a more technical two-week Turtle Bootcamp.

START’s current focus is on recording sightings of rare species, egg laying activity and road mortality. Their office takes calls to report injured turtles, rare sightings and egg laying activities, and can respond with trained staff and volunteers.

The Land Between is another organization relying on community scientists to support its turtle programs. The Land Between is a partnership designed to preserve the unique ecological zone linking the Canadian Shield and the St. Lawrence Lowlands.

To date, it has recruited more than 800 community scientists in a range of programs. Four of its projects focus on turtles. Road researchers patrol area roads where turtles are most active and report turtle activities or injuries. Crossing guards are stationed at known zones of high turtle activities, to ensure turtles cross the road safely and report details of all turtle activity. Wetland watchers are assigned to wetlands to collect data on turtle species and activity from June to September. Finally, where turtles are reported nesting on roadsides, nest sitters are called in.

“With our nest sitters program, community science volunteers sit beside nesting mothers and wait there, guarding her while she nests and watching the nest until a member of the turtle guardians staff can come to excavate the eggs,” explains Kate Dickson, outreach lead for The Land Between.

Eggs retrieved from those roadside nests are handled and incubated under strict government permits. Dickson estimates the survival rate is improved by a factor of 19 with the monitored incubation.

Throughout this series, iNaturalist will be mentioned as another outlet of community science. iNaturalist is a free, photo-based app. Post a photo of a plant, bird or insect, and species identification will be confirmed by experts who monitor the site. The platform is used by many scientists who can collect massive amounts of data that are easily downloaded to analytical software. There’s value for the volunteer, too, as an interactive wildlife guide.

The District of Muskoka’s Integrated Watershed Management plan uses iNaturalist to record plant, animal, fungus or insect species within the Muskoka River watershed.

Jenna Kentel led recent research on preventing turtles from nesting on roadsides in the Township of the Archipelago for her master of science degree. While community science wasn’t included in her work, the Laurentian University student summed up its value for wildlife preservation.

“Community science data are incredibly important for conservation projects,” Kentel said. “Observations that are reported through apps such as iNaturalist can help develop our understanding of species distributions. This is especially important for road mortality observations because they can help us to identify priority areas for conservation.”

Conservation and protection of turtles can be supported by everyone – community science at work.