An Ad Hoc Translocation of Urban Eastern Box Turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina)

Poor, Erin E.; Spivy, Annette; Rohrbaugh, Lindsay; Mullinax, Jennifer M.

doi:10.1656/045.027.0403

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Long-term monitoring is a consideration for any translocation (Poor et al 2020). Wildlife rehabilitation teams can and should monitor released species with particular focus on individual risk factors and periods of stress within the translocation period.…”

Section: Post-release Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Many chelonians have strong site fidelity (McKee et al 2021). Past attempts to relocate box turtles to unfamiliar areas with suitable habitats have seen mixed results (Hester et al 2008;Henriquez et al 2017;Poor et al 2020). Many EBTs disperse toward their home ranges (Cook 2004) and there is some evidence that box turtles face increased mortality and expanded range size after translocation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Rehabilitators can also adjust a release location if hazards or predators are regularly observed via game cameras around the pen. Although a 21-day soft release period was sufficient for our study, to our knowledge, there is no standard soft release penning duration for rehabilitated EBTs and it is possible that longer-term penning(Frederick 2009) or repositioning EBTs within the relocation habitat(Poor et al 2020) may further support successful translocations.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Pilot study on the use of soft release for translocation of rehabilitated eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina)

Alexander,

Debbie Sykes,

Healan

2023

Bulletin

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Successfully rehabilitated eastern box turtles (EBTs, Terrapene carolina carolina) originating from destroyed or degraded habitats are prime candidates for translocation. However, physiological and behavioral characteristics of chelonians often lead to acclimation difficulties and limited survival post-release. Soft release is a translocation technique whereby an animal is held in a pen on location and allowed to acclimate to its new habitat area for a predetermined duration prior to release. This pilot study explored the viability of small-scale, soft release penning to aid wildlife rehabilitators in the translocation of rehabilitated EBTs. We hypothesized that soft release penning is a practical strategy to help rehabilitated EBTs maintain health and appropriately sized territory in new environments. We built and deployed two soft release pens that were used to relocate three rehabilitated EBTs with varying success to an urban greenspace in Nashville, Tennessee. Our results suggest that soft release penning provides a unique opportunity to observe health and behavior in a controlled environment during the initial period of acclimation, and this early intervention period may help rehabilitators facilitate successful translocation. Further research is recommended to evaluate the direct impacts of soft release pens on body condition, dispersal distance, and home range size of translocated EBTs.

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Section: Post-release Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pilot study on the use of soft release for translocation of rehabilitated eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina)

Alexander,

Debbie Sykes,

Healan

2023

Bulletin

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Evaluating translocation strategies for box turtles in urbanising landscapes

Hays,

Royal,

Hollender

et al. 2024

Wildlife Res.

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Context Translocation is a common management strategy for wildlife populations, yet hard-release of reptiles, including box turtles (Terrapene spp.), has often proven ineffective due to homing attempts and wandering. Soft-release translocation has been presented as a possible method for mitigation of the negative effects of hard-release translocation, but studies incorporating standard soft-release strategies have produced mixed results and often see persistent homing attempts by soft-released study animals. Aims The aim of this study was to examine long-term holding (>1 year) of box turtles at an off-site location prior to translocation as a means to reduce homing attempts and wandering commonly observed in immediate-release box turtles. Methods We radiotracked translocated Terrapene carolina triunguis to compare movements of nine immediate-release box turtles and nine box turtles that had been maintained for >1 year at a nearby off-site holding facility (long-term holding) prior to a 750–1000 m translocation. Key results Box turtles held long-term before a short-distance translocation moved significantly shorter distances each day post-release than immediate-release turtles. Turtles held long-term moved in non-directional, random orientations, whereas immediate-release turtles exhibited consistent directionality in movements back towards their initial capture (home) locations. Conclusions Our results demonstrated that turtles held off-site remained within the translocation site more reliably than the immediate-release turtles, which had a higher tendency to home. Implications Long-term holding of turtles prior to translocation could significantly reduce homing responses and wandering, thus increasing translocation efficacy while reducing intensity of post-translocation management.

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Translocation of Long-Term Captive Eastern Box Turtles and the Efficacy of Soft-Release: Implications for Turtle Confiscations

Rimple,

Kohl,

Buhlmann

et al. 2024

Northeastern Naturalist

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An Ad Hoc Translocation of Urban Eastern Box Turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina)

Cited by 3 publications

References 31 publications

Pilot study on the use of soft release for translocation of rehabilitated eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina)

Pilot study on the use of soft release for translocation of rehabilitated eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina)

Evaluating translocation strategies for box turtles in urbanising landscapes

Translocation of Long-Term Captive Eastern Box Turtles and the Efficacy of Soft-Release: Implications for Turtle Confiscations

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