Emergence Season and Survival in the Nest of Hatchling Turtles in Southcentral New Hampshire

We report the season of emergence from the nest of hatchlings of five species of freshwater turtles from a wetlands/stream/lake complex in southcentral New Hampshire from 1988–1994. Only hatchling Chrysemys picta (Painted Turtle) overwintered in the nest and emerged the following spring, although th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Northeastern naturalist 2007-06, Vol.14 (2), p.307-310
Main Authors: Carroll, David M, Ultsch, Gordon R
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal nesting
Autumn
Birds
Chrysemys picta
Clemmys guttata
Conservation biology
Eggs
Emydoidea blandingii
Mortality
Overwintering
Snapping turtles
Studies
Turtles
Winter
Zoology
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Summary:We report the season of emergence from the nest of hatchlings of five species of freshwater turtles from a wetlands/stream/lake complex in southcentral New Hampshire from 1988–1994. Only hatchling Chrysemys picta (Painted Turtle) overwintered in the nest and emerged the following spring, although there were some cases of autumn emergence, as well as some nests with hatchlings that emerged in both seasons. In nests monitored over the winter, mortality ranged from 26–100%. Hatchlings of the other four species—Chelydra serpentina (Snapping Turtle), Glyptemys insculpta (Wood Turtle), Clemmys guttata (Spotted Turtle), and Emydoidea blandingii (Blanding's Turtle)—emerged only in autumn.
ISSN:1092-6194
1938-5307
DOI:10.1656/1092-6194(2007)14[307:ESASIT]2.0.CO;2