Western Painted Turtle Species Blog

Photo Credit: Peter Ballin

They might be turtles, but these girls and guys don’t have any special ninja-turtle survival skills. Instead, the Western Painted Turtle is reliant upon us to make sure it doesn’t go extinct. So far, we’ve failed.

 

The Western Painted Turtle is the only pond turtle native to British Columbia, and spends most warm days basking, in order to regulate its body temperature and be able to digest food. Spotting a Western Painted Turtle usually happens during these times. If not found basking, you can spot a Western Painted Turtle while it’s swimming around in its aquatic habitat and eating food. Turtles can’t swallow food unless their mouths are completely underwater, and this turtle is no exception to that rule.

 

Winter sees the Western Painted Turtle hibernate. It has an amazing ability to survive even the harshest winters. How? By burying itself into the muddy bottoms of the streams and ponds it calls home. The mud keeps the turtle insulated from the cold, and helps it lowers its metabolic rate to keep the amount of lactic acid in its body very low. Any lactic acid is dealt with by magnesium and calcium stored in the turtle’s shell, and it can live like this for up to 5 months, even if the water above it is covered by up to a half-metre of ice!

 

Adding to all of this is the fact that the Western Painted Turtle is the most northerly-occurring species of turtle in North America, and you’ve got one very impressive turtle.

 

But we’re not helping it out at all. The Western Painted Turtle requires marshes, logs, wetlands, shallow streams and ponds with muddy bottoms and other such habitat features in order to thrive. And that’s exactly the kind of habitat we’ve been building cities and roads on, particularly in the Lower Mainland of BC. And in addition to hurting this turtle by ruining the few places it can live, a surprisingly high number end up dying while crossing streets. It’s a double-whammy of death for the Western Painted Turtle, which is even more problematic considering how few of them nest every year, and how few of those eggs end up hatching and producing healthy adult turtles.

 

What to do? First, we all need to be aware of the Western Painted Turtle and its plight. Second, realize that it’s an important part of our ecosystem, as it helps control insect and smaller reptile populations. Third, if you find a turtle, leave it alone! Last, we all need to do our part to protect turtle habitats, so that these reptiles can continue to exist for future generations. If you think you can help, check out the Western Painted Turtle Stewardship program.