Initiation of a Community-Based Conservation Effort: The Effects of Urbanization on Box Turtles
J.D. Willson
Davidson College
Introduction-
The goal of this project is to initiate a study that involves both Davidson
College students and the Davidson community in an ongoing conservation-oriented
endeavor to understand the effects of human development on the native fauna
of the North Carolina. Urban expansion and development is on of the most critical
environmental issues we face as a rapidly developing nation. The Charlotte,
N.C. area, in particular, is one of the most rapidly developing regions of the
country (41 acres per day; CLCN 1998) and is thus a region where habitat development
issues are especially pertinent. One of the keys to addressing this issue is
community awareness and involvement. An ideal way to involve the public and
campus community is to include them as partners in a meaningful conservation-oriented
scientific study. The eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina) provides
an ideal subject for a long-term community-based conservation project. In addition
to being common throughout the Southern United States, box turtles are long-lived
and are easy capture and to mark. Box turtles are also one of the most readily
recognizable animals by the public and are easy and safe for them to capture.
To investigate the effects of urbanization on box turtle populations on and
around the Davidson College campus we will engage the students and community
to capture as many box turtles as possible from both developed and undeveloped
habitats. To encourage involvement, students and community will be solicited
via e-mail and brochures as well as a special box turtle segment in a Davidson
Reptile Day at the beginning of the box turtle activity season (early March).
Reptile Day will be an event, open to the public, aimed at education about the
conservation of reptiles and amphibians through live animal presentations and
open question and answer sessions. Captured turtles will be returned to the
lab where they will be measured, marked, and x-rayed for eggs. Comparisons in
morphology, habits, and life history characteristics will allow us to evaluate
the effects of development on box turtle populations and help to develop sound
conservation strategies that will benefit both box turtles and other species
in the region.
Project Description-
I will examine the effects of urbanization on box turtle populations by initiating
a long-term study that compares morphology, habits, and life history characteristics
between box turtles from developed and undeveloped areas around Davidson, N.C.
In order to obtain as great a sample size as possible, members of the school
and community will be involved in collection of turtles from around Davidson.
Students and the public will be encouraged through solicitation by e-mail, distribution
of informational brochures, and a Reptile Day in March. Once returned to the
lab each turtle will be aged, sexed, and have the length, width, and depth of
its shell measured. In addition, female turtles will be x-rayed to determine
the number of eggs she is carrying. Turtles will then be marked to allow for
identification upon recapture. Finally, each turtle will be released at its
exact capture location and that location will be recorded using a handheld Global
Positioning Systems (GPS) unit. Recapture data will be used to estimate population
density and movement patterns. In addition, the first nine turtles found in
developed habitats and the first nine found in undeveloped habitats will be
tracked for an extended period using radio-telemetry. Radio-telemetry, in combination
with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and GPS, will be used to compare home
range size, activity patterns, and habitat use between turtles from developed
and undeveloped areas. Although I will gather much meaningful data this semester,
this project will be continued through subsequent years by other interested
students, yielding long-term data that is often difficult for a single project
to provide. Continuation of the project will require minimal investment of funds,
will provide other students with opportunities to conduct meaningful scientific
research, and will continue to foster collaboration between the biology department
and the Davidson community.