by Rick O'Connor | May 26, 2022
As the Sea Grant Extension Agent in Escambia County, one of my program areas is to help restore a healthy estuary. To do this we focus on educating the public how to improve water quality, restore habitat, and manage invasive species, but we also focus on how to monitor fish and wildlife. The fish and wildlife I focus on are those that were once common in the bay and are trying to make a comeback – such as scallops and horseshoe crabs. But there is another estuarine creature we are interested in that does not fall into the classic “bring them back” model and that is the estuarine turtle known as the diamondback terrapin.
The diamondback terrapin.
Photo: Molly O’Connor
Unlike scallops and horseshoe crabs, this is not an animal that people remember as a kid. In fact, very few Floridians in the panhandle have ever heard of it. Some older distribution maps of their range show that they exist from Cape Cod MA to Brownsville TX, but with a gap in the Florida panhandle. That was because there was no scientific literature of the animal’s existence here. And that was when the Panhandle Terrapin Project began – to confirm whether or not terrapins existed here.
In 2005, working with students at Washington High School in Pensacola, we began our search by placing “Wanted Posters” at boat ramps in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties near good terrapin habitat, which is salt marsh. We began to get calls almost right away, but for a variety of other turtle species. Folks were calling us with photos of box turtles, yellow-bellied sliders, and cooters. It showed there was interest in the project but was evident they were not familiar with the terrapin.
Around 80% of the terrapin nests are depredated by raccoons, or some other predator.
Photo: Bob Blais
Volunteers log the number of female tracks they see on their beaches.
Photo: Cindy Marvel
I interviewed several ole gill netters to see if they remember ever capturing them – same response, “I never heard of those”. I did show one gill netter a photo and he responded – “you know, I think we did catch a couple of these”. But no confirmation of their existence here. It was time to begin searching ourselves.
The team began to survey good terrapin habitat and walking potential nesting beaches looking for any evidence. We did not find it. Then one day in 2007 a gentleman working on a construction site responded to one of our “Wanted Posters”. He said he had seen one of our terrapins. After all of the calls that led to other species, I was not so sure – but he convinced me it might be. So, we checked it out. The sign was placed in good habitat and there were potential nesting beaches nearby. We searched… and we found. What we found were nests that had been depredated by raccoons. There were empty eggshells laying around and two dead hatchlings. There were also tracks in the sand. Confirmation… there were terrapins here!
It was now time to take the show on the road and see if terrapins exist in other counties along the panhandle. My wife and I would take part of our summer vacations and camp along the coast searching. We found at least one record of a terrapin in each of the counties between the Alabama state line and Apalachicola River. All of this was presented to the Florida Diamondback Terrapin Working Group of which there are members from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Word was out.
Terrapins prefer sandy beaches and lay their eggs during daylight hours.
Photo: Molly O’Connor
A terrapin hatchling.
Photo: Molly O’Connor
The next step was to assess their status. How many are here and how are those populations doing?
We did this by following a method developed by Tom Mann with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife. Tom was monitoring terrapins in that state and the subspecies he worked with, the Mississippi Terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin pileata) was the one that was thought to be in Pensacola Bay. So, it was Tom’s method we decided to follow. This includes walking nesting beaches and logging individual tracks and depredated nests in 16-day cycles. Tom’s model assumed that all mature females in the population nest each season and that they do not lay more than one clutch in a 16-day period. The idea is that each track and nest represented one female, and assuming the sex ratio of male to female is 1:1, doubling the number of tracks and depredated nests found in that period would give an idea of how many adult males and females are in this group. Seemed easy enough so these surveys became part of our project.
Another method learned by attending conferences was a 30-minute head count. If you can find the lagoons where the terrapins actually live you can sit and count the number of heads you see in a 30-minute period. It is true that 23 heads does not mean there are 23 terrapins, but the relative abundance can be monitored. If you typically see 20-23 heads and over time that decreases to 11-15, then the relative abundance is declining. It is a method that citizen science volunteers can do and so was included in the project.
Modified crab traps is one method used to capture adults.
Photo: Molly O’Connor
A diamondback terrapin being measured and marked before release.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
We also wanted to try and capture individuals to mark and tag. Mark recapture is a method used to estimate populations but capturing terrapins has been historically difficult to do. Several methods have been used by members of the Working Group and we have tried them as well. We have captured terrapins, but very few.
In 2018 the Team partnered with the U.S. Geological Survey to increase the robustness of the project. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission became interested in tissue samples from captured animal to study the genetics of the terrapins in this area. Since 2015 we have trained 228 individuals to conduct surveys, and some have been with me that entire time. Many of them have spent countless hours helping assess the status of this animal in our bays. Many days they see nothing. Others a few tracks or depredated nests. Some locations have good luck with head counts, but many of them finding nothing.
The Mississippi terrapin found in Pensacola Bay is darker in color than the Ornate terrapin found in other bays of the panhandle.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
This terrapin has the coloration of the Ornate terrapin but was found much further west than the literature suggest it lives.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
I keep track of “Frequency of Occurrence” (FOO) – the number of surveys where some sort of terrapin encounter happens. This encounter can be as simple as a track in the sand, but they had SOME encounter. It is my hope that over time encounters with them will increase, just as I hope it does with scallops and horseshoe crabs. Since 2007 the FOO has ranged from 12-86% of the surveys conducted, with an average of about 25%. The best year was 2011 (86%), just after the Deepwater Horizon spill. There was a steady increase in FOO from 2007 to 2012 when it took a significant drop. However, this is not because the relative abundance of terrapins suddenly dropped. 2012 was the year I moved from the marine science program at Washington High School to Florida Sea Grant Extension. There were all new volunteers and the learning curve started over. They were not as good at detecting them as the previous group. But that is changing. 2022 is looking to be a busy year for the team.
So far this year we have seen terrapin activity on almost every nesting beach between here and Apalachicola. One site had 49 heads in a 30-minute head count! There have been several active nests, numerous tracks, and plenty of depredated nests. In addition, we have found one dead hatchling and captured two adults. Tissue from these have been collected for the genetic study. But the strangest story this year… a security guard has told us of terrapin hatchlings that have been dropped on their guard shack by birds. Sea birds are known to do this to try and crack open shells of mollusk so they can feed on them. I have never heard of this with terrapins, not here or anywhere.
A dedicated volunteer is rewarded with a capture.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
It seems it is going to be a terrific year for the terrapin project this year. It is exciting for our volunteers to have so many encounters and nice to know that the public is becoming more familiar with this animal. I cannot say whether the population is increasing or not but our knowledge, understanding, and encounters are.
by Rick O'Connor | Dec 17, 2021
Recently I watched a documentary on TV entitled The Loneliest Whale; the search for 52. The title grabbed my attention and so, I checked it out.
There are many forms of wildlife that are very hard to find in our area. But we continue to look.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
Seems a decade or so ago the U.S. Navy was doing SONAR work in the Pacific between Washington and Alaska and detected a strange sound coming in at 52 hertz. They had not herd this before and would continue to hear it in different locations around the northern Pacific. Their first concern was it was something new from the Russians, but when they showed the graphs and played the recording to a marine mammologist named Dr. Watkins, they found that it was most likely a “biological” – mostly likely a whale.
The problem was that Dr. Watkins had never heard whales calling at 52 hertz. If it was a whale, it was calling a lot – but no other whales were answering. Hence the name “the loneliest whale”. If it was a whale, and no others would talk to it, it was kind of sad. But who was this whale? What kind was it?
Word of the loneliest whale spread around the world and many humans made a connection to this animal, possibly because of their own disconnect with their own species. Stories and ballads were written, and people began to feel for the poor animal that apparently had no friends.
This story caught the attention of a documentary film maker who was interested in finding “52”, as the whale became known. He solicited the help of other marine mammologists; Dr. Watkins had died. According to those marine mammologists, this was going to be VERY difficult. It is hard enough to find just a pod of whales in the open Pacific, much less a specific pod with a specific individual. But they were excited about the challenge of finding this one animal, “52”, and off they went.
As I was watching this documentary it reminded me of my own search here near Pensacola. In 2005, I was asked by members of state turtle groups if I could search to see if diamondback terrapins lived in the western panhandle. This turtle’s range is from Cape Cod Massachusetts to Brownsville Texas, but there were no records from the Florida panhandle. Did the animal exist there? I was running the marine science program at Washington High School at the time and thought this would be a good project for us. So, we began.
Mississippi Diamondback Terrapin (photo: Molly O’Connor)
This small turtle can be held safely by grabbing it near the bridge area on each side.
Photo: Molly O’Connor
The students researched terrapin biology and ecology to determine the locations with the highest probability of finding, and we searched. I quickly found that the best time to search for terrapins was during nesting in May and June, and that the worst time to do a project with high school seniors was May and June. So, the project fell on my wife and me. For two years we searched all the “good spots” and found nothing. We placed “Wanted Poster’s” at boat ramps near the good spots with only calls about other species of turtles, not the terrapin.
Then one day in a call came in from a construction worker. Said he had seen the turtle we were looking for. For over a year we had been chasing “false calls” of terrapins. So, I was not overly excited thinking this would be another box turtle or slider. I asked a few questions about what he was looking at and he responded with “you’re the guy who put the wanted poster up correct? – well your turtle is standing next to the poster… it’s the same turtle”. Now I was excited. We did some surveys in that area and in 2007 saw our first terrapin! I can’t tell you how exciting it was. Two years of searching… at times thinking we might work on another project with a different species that actually exists… reading that the diamondback terrapin is like the Loch Ness monster – everyone talks about them, but no one has ever seen one. And there it was, a track in the sand and a head in the water. Yes Virginia… terrapins do exist in the Florida panhandle. The excitement of finding one was indescribable.
We were hooked. We now had to look in other counties in the panhandle, and yes, we found them. As I watched the program of the marine mammologists searching for “52” I could completely relate.
Today, as a marine educator with Florida Sea Grant, I train others how to do terrapin surveys and searches. I let them know how hard it is to find them and to not get disappointed. When they do see one, it will be a very exciting and fulfilling day. Our citizen science program has expanded to searching for other elusive creatures in our bay area. Bay scallops, which are all but gone however we do find evidence of their existence and spend time each year searching for them. In the five years we have been searching we have found only one live scallop, but we are sure they are there. We find their cleaned shells on public boat ramps – by the way, it is illegal to harvest bay scallops in the Pensacola Bay area. Another we are searching for is the nesting beaches of the horseshoe crabs. This is another animal that basically disappeared from our waters but are occasionally seen now. It is exciting to find one, but we are still after their nesting beaches and the chase is on.
Bay Scallop Argopecten irradians
http://myfwc.com/fishing/saltwater/recreational/bay-scallops/
Horseshoe crabs breeding on the beach.
Photo: Florida Sea Grant
I love the challenge of searching for such creatures. If you do as well, we have a citizen science program that does so. You can just contact me at the Escambia County Extension Office to get on the training list, trainings occur in March, and we will get you out there searching. As for whether they found “52”, you will have to watch the program 😊
by Rick O'Connor | May 17, 2020
In my time educating the public about Florida turtles I have found that most Floridians have not heard of diamondback terrapins. They have heard of, and seen turtles, but are not sure what the names of the different species are and are not familiar with the term terrapin at all. Which brings up the question – what is the different between a turtle, a tortoise, and a terrapin?
The light colored skin and dark markings are pretty unique to the terrapin.
Photo: Molly O’Connor
Honestly, they are cultural terms and not “biological” descriptions. We associate the term “tortoise” with a land turtle – and this is true – yet we call the box turtle a “turtle” – which is fine. In Great Britain they call almost everything a “terrapin”. The term “terrapin” is a Delaware Indian term meaning “edible turtle”. Most turtles are edible, but this term stuck to a group of brackish water turtles in the Chesapeake area near Delaware we now call “terrapins”.
In the Mid-Atlantic states, terrapins are more known than they are here – and they appear to be more abundant. They are the mascot of the University of Maryland, and the official state reptile there. “Turtle Soup”, a popular cultural dish in the Chesapeake, is made with terrapins. It was served as part of the state dinner when Abraham Lincoln was president – considering it a classic “American” dish. They were harvested by walking through the marshes with a burlap sack and a gig. A sack could bring a harvester about $10, but when the popularity of the dish increased, hand harvesting could not keep up with demand and terrapin farms began. I know there were terrapin farms in the Carolinas, but there was one near Mobile, Alabama as well. Apparently, terrapins existed outside of the Chesapeake – and that brings us back to Florida… we have them too!
Ornate Diamondback Terrapins Depend on Coastal Marshes and Sea Grass Habitats
There are seven subspecies of this brackish water turtle. They range from Massachusetts to Texas. It is the only resident brackish water species, spending its whole life in salt marshes (or mangroves in south Florida). Florida has five of the seven subspecies, and three of the seven ONLY live in Florida – yet most of us do not know the animal exist.
Very few researchers worked with terrapins in this state – there was virtually nothing known about them in panhandle. In 2005 I began to survey panhandle marshes to see if terrapins existed here. I grew up in the panhandle, and like so many others, had never seen or heard of one. I asked local fishermen who use to gillnet the marshes back in the 1950s and 1960s (when it was allowed) if they were aware of this this turtle. I asked them “did you ever capture a terrapin?” They did not know what I was talking about. And then I showed them a picture… “OH… yea, we did catch these once in a while – what are they called again? Terrapins?”. This was a game changer for me in terrapin education – show them a terrapin and ask if they have ever seen a turtle that looks like this.
The response was still “what is that? It’s beautiful!”… and they are. Terrapins have light colored skin with dark specks or bars – a really pretty cool looking turtle. Oh, and they are in the panhandle, just not in big numbers – or, at least, we have not found them in big numbers 😊.
These brackish water turtles spend their entire lives in a marsh system feeding on mollusk and crustaceans. Like map turtles (their nearest cousins), the females are larger with wide heads for crushing the shells of their prey. They are considered an important member of the ecosystem in that the reduction of terrapins can cause an increase in the marsh periwinkle (a popular snail food) who would in turn stop feeding on leaf litter and attack the live plants themselves – threatening the existence of the marsh. So, they are important predators on marsh grazers. Not having a lot of trees in a salt marsh, you do not see them basking on logs as you do with other riverine turtles. They do, however, exit the water and bury in the mud/sand for long periods to bask.
A baby terrapin.
Photo: Molly O’Connor
After mating, the females usually leave the marsh for the open estuary, swim along the shorelines looking for high/dry ground for nesting. More often than not, these are sandy beaches – but they have been known to dig nest in crushed shell mounds, dredge spoil islands, along highways, backyards, and even runways of airports – wherever “high and dry” can be found in a marsh. In Louisiana a lady found one roaming around inside her outdoor shower – good luck nesting there!
The females lay about 10 eggs in a clutch and will lay more than one clutch each year. Baby terrapins are one of the coolest looking turtles you will see. They emerge from the nest in late summer and fall, hiding in the wrack debris along the shoreline. It is believed they actually have a more terrestrial life early on before entering the water and living out their lives in the marsh.
The popularity of turtle soup has waned since the Civil War, as have the wild harvest and aquaculture projects. However, the turtle is still under tremendous pressure from humans. We began using wired crab traps in the 1950s and terrapins have a habit of swimming into these, where they drown. The problem is not that large in Florida, but in the Chesapeake, they have found as many as 40 terrapins in one crab trap! Most of these are “ghost crab traps” – ones that “got away” from the owner but are still harvesting marine live – including crabs. One paper indicated that in the early part of the 21st century, in one year in the Chesapeake, over 900,000 blue crabs died in ghost crab traps – a commercial value of about $300,000. So, the ghost crab trap is a problem whether it kills terrapins, redfish, flounder, or blue crab. Today, many crab traps have biodegradable panels so that if the trap “gets away” it will eventually breakdown and not capture organisms like terrapins. In the Chesapeake many states require crab traps to have a By-Catch Reduction Device (BRD) to keep terrapins out – but allow crabs in. They are not required in Florida, however FWC will provide them for free if you are interested. I have some in my office in Pensacola and more than willing to give them to you. FWC also hosts crab trap removal programs, and I encourage you to participate in these.
This orange plastic rectangle is a Bycatch Reduction Device (BRD) used to keep terrapins out of crab traps – but not crabs.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
A bigger issue for Florida is the land-based predators. As we moved closer and closer to the salt marshes, we built bridges and roads that allowed land-based predators to reach the nesting beaches they previously did not have access to. Raccoons in particular are a big problem, depredating as many as 90% of the terrapin nests. Poaching for the pet trade is rising and FWC is working on this. Several major arrests have been made in Florida in recent years. It is illegal to sell Florida turtles, so do not buy them if you see them being sold somewhere. Report the activity to FWC.
Due to all of this, terrapins afford some form of protection in each of the coastal states where they exist. Some list them as “endangered” or “threatened”. In Florida, they do not have this label, but they are protected by FWC. No one is allowed to have more than two in their possession, and you are not allowed to have any eggs.
It is an amazing turtle. I currently conduct a citizen science program monitoring them in the western panhandle. I have a lot of eager volunteers wanting to see their first one in the wild. I hope they do soon. I hope they hang around long enough for everyone to see one in the wild.
by Ray Bodrey | Apr 17, 2019
Soon, two important ecological surveys will begin in Gulf County, concerning both diamondback terrapins and mangroves.
Florida is home to five subspecies of diamondback terrapin, three of which occur exclusively in Florida. Diamondback terrapins live in coastal marshes, tidal creeks, mangroves, and other brackish or estuarine habitats. However, the diamondback terrapin is currently listed as a Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN).
Diamondback terrapin populations, unfortunately, are nationally in decline. Human activities, such as pollution, land development and crabbing without by-catch reduction devices are often reasons for the decline, but decades ago they were almost hunted to extinction for their tasty meat. The recent decline has raised concern of not only federal agencies, but also organizations and community groups on the state and local levels. Diamondback Terrapin range is thought to have once been all of coastal Florida, including the Keys.
Figure 1: Diamondback Terrapin.
Credit: Rick O’Connor, UF/IFAS Extension & Florida Sea Grant, Escambia County.
Mangroves, a shoreline plant species of south Florida, are migrating north and are now being found in the Panhandle. Both red and black mangroves have been found in St. Joseph Bay. Mangroves establishment could be an important key to a healthy bay ecosystem, as a factor in shoreline restoration and critical aquatic life habitat.
Currently there is a significant data gap for both diamondback terrapin and mangrove populations. Therefore, there is a great need to conduct assessments to learn more about their geographic distribution.
Figure 2. Black Mangrove in St. Joseph Bay.
Credit: Ray Bodrey, UF/IFAS Extension & Florida Sea Grant, Gulf County.
The Forgotten Coast Sea Turtle Center is partnering with UF/IFAS Extension & Florida Sea Grant to assist in surveying and monitoring diamondback terrapins and mangroves in St. Joseph Bay, and we need your help! UF/IFAS Extension & Florida Sea Grant Agent’s Rick O’Connor and Ray Bodrey are providing a training workshop for volunteers and coordinating surveys for St. Joseph Bay. Terrapin surveys require visiting an estuarine location where terrapin nesting sites and mangrove plants are highly probable. Volunteers will visit their assigned locations at least once a week during the months of May and June and complete data sheets for each trip. Each survey takes about two hours, and some locations may require a kayak to reach.
If you are interested in volunteering for these important projects, we will hold a training session on Monday, April 22nd at 1:00 p.m. ET at the Forgotten Coast Sea Turtle Center (located at 1001 10th Street, Port St. Joe).
For more information, please contact:
Ray Bodrey, UF/IFAS Extension Gulf County, Extension Director
rbodrey@ufl.edu
(850) 639-3200
UF/IFAS Extension is an Equal Opportunity Institution.
by Rick O'Connor | Apr 22, 2016
Many folks are putting together a “bucket list” of things they would like to do or see before they can no longer do them. For many interested in natural resources there are certain national parks and scenic places they would like to visit. Other natural resource fans have a list of wildlife species they would like to see.
Terrapins inhabit creeks, such as this one, within the expanse of the salt marsh. Here you can see their heads pop up above the water and you may get lucky enough to find one basking.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
Recently I hooked with famed Alabama outdoorsman Jimbo Meador to search for locations to find Alabama turtles. Jimbo has been fishing, hunting, and enjoying the Mobile Bay area all of his life and he now using that knowledge as a guide in a nature-based tourism project. He recently received a call from a group of gentleman from another part of the country who had on their bucket list viewing 1000 reptilian species in their native habitat. In Alabama they were interested in the Black-knobbed Map Turtle, the Alabama Red Belly, and the Diamondback Terrapin. Jimbo has just begun the first module of the Florida Master Naturalist Program and reached out to us for advice on where to find these guys. Luckily, after working with scientists from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, I knew where to find diamondback terrapins – and have a pretty good idea on the others.
These “diamonds of the marsh” – as they are sometimes called – are very elusive creatures. They inhabit muddy bottom creeks within extensive salt marsh habitat all along the Gulf and East coast of the United States. I spent two years searching the Florida panhandle before I found my first live animal. It was one of the odd things though – once you have seen one, you now know what you are looking for and begin to find more.
I took Jimbo to a location near Dauphin Island where about 150 terrapins are believed to exist. Terrapins spend most of their day within creeks that meander through acres of salt marsh. The odd thing is there may be hundreds of creeks within these marshes and the terrapins – for some reason – will select their favorites and hang there. You can spend all day paddling through perfect looking creeks not seeing a head at all… then all of sudden… you enter one creek… not really any different than the others… and there they are.
Veteran waterman and outdoor guide, Jimbo Meador, explores the marshes near Dauphin Island for the elusive diamondback terrapin.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
Within these creeks they feed on a variety of shellfish but particularly like the marsh periwinkles. These small snails are the ones that climb the cordgrass and needlerush plants during high tide to avoid their nemesis the blue crab and the diamondback terrapin. Terrapins do crawl out of the water to bask in the sun and have been known to bury in the loose fine mud. Females must find high dry ground to lay her eggs. She may swim as far as 5 miles from her home creek to find a suitable beach. They do like sandy beaches that are open and free of most plants. They emerge onto these beaches during May and June to lay about 7-10 eggs. Most females will lay more than one clutch each season emerging once every 16 days or so. Different from sea turtles – terrapins nest during the daylight hours. Actually the sunnier – the better. Raccoons are a big problem… find and consuming the eggs; on some beaches researchers have reported 90% or more of the nest have been raided by the furry guys. Crows, snakes, and possibly armadillos will take nests as well. If the developing young survive the 60+ days of incubation, they will emerge and head for the grass areas of the marsh… not the water. Here they will spend the first year of their life living more like a land turtle before they make their way to the brackish waters of the salt marsh.
Open sandy beaches, such as the one in this photograph, are the spots females terrapins seek when they are ready to dig a nest.
Photo: Rick O’Connor
These are fascinating creatures and should be on everyone’s natural resource bucket list. The hard effort of finding them really makes doing so very rewarding. On this day Jimbo saw only one head – I did not see any. I have found in my study site that I see more heads in the afternoon (we were out in the morning). I do not know if this is the case at all terrapin nesting sites, but something to consider when looking. Though we did not find many that day he now knows what to look for when searching for them. Next we will have to hunt the Alabama Red Belly Turtle. That is another story for another day.
We will continue this series with other interesting wildlife creatures to “hunt” in the Florida panhandle.
