The wood turtles of Waterbury

Nov. 17, 2022  |  By Tom Scribner 

Wood turtle photo courtesy Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department

Waterbury residents don't have to travel to the Champlain Islands to find turtles in Vermont. 

There are seven species of turtles living in our state. Turtles are considered in Native American culture to represent healing, wisdom, spirituality, health, safety, longevity and fertility. They are known to have originated around 230 million years ago during the Triassic Period though from what is not clear. Turtles of North America are believed to have survived the Ice Age and mass extinction because of their slow metabolisms and aquatic lifestyles. 

Waterbury Center is home to a long-established population of wood turtles. The species first appeared during the Miocene Epoch, 23 million to 5 million years ago. As the last ice sheets of the Ice Age retreated (approximately 11,000 years ago) the wood turtle expanded its range. 

The Vermont Department of Fish & Wildlife reports that the wood turtle has been in Vermont for approximately 10,000 years. 

Here in Vermont, we are fortunate to have some of the foremost wood turtle experts. Steve Parren worked for the state of Vermont for over 25 years and followed the wood turtle population using radio transmitters. Kiley Briggs director of conservation with the Orianne Society has ongoing research on wood turtle populations in Vermont. 

The wood turtles of Waterbury Center are known to state wildlife experts and local property owners who are familiar with the turtles breeding and foraging. The range of the Hope Davey wood turtles is extensive, as far as a quarter mile, and the clear mountain waters coming from the Worcester Range are ideal for their survival. 

They spend most of their time within 300 feet of their home stream with all of their needs for survival close by. The turtles can live as long as 60 years, and are at mature reproduction age at about 15 years. They typically lay about 8 eggs, and the survival rate is very low. 

Wood turtles tend to be shy and are not easily found. They prefer isolated sunny areas where they can sunbathe. Their shape and coloring are such effective camouflage that you could pass closely by and never know the turtle was there. 

Wood turtles are found in floodplain forests and wet meadows adjacent to streams and small rivers with slow to moderate flow. Foraging resources include herbaceous shrubs and plants, including berry plants, willows, alders and grasses. Vernal pools provide protection and many food sources including amphibian eggs.

In the fall, wood turtles hibernate at the bottom of deep pools, undercut banks, and submerged woody debris within streams. Come spring they lay their eggs on gravel sandbars and sandy stream banks. Through the summer they forage in meadows, fields, and mature forests and travel slowly but determinedly to find what they are looking for. 

Maintaining habitat is critical for the survival of wood turtles. The protection of contiguous, unfragmented habitat with all of the mentioned features is the most effective way of promoting the survival of the species according to the NorthWoods Stewardship Center in Island Pond, Vermont.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has published a very detailed summary of wood turtle habitat and preservation requirements.

Here is a highlight of habitat requirements:

Habitat degradation and destruction, illegal collecting for the pet trade, and increased mortality from road kills and predation have impacted wood turtle populations throughout their range. This late-maturing species has low recruitment potential and is highly vulnerable to the loss of any individuals from the population. Conservation efforts should include identification of viable wood turtle populations and the protection of upland foraging habitat and nesting sites. Activities affecting water quality and water level management must also be addressed.

Preservation of high-quality wood turtle habitat is dependent upon reasonable floodplain conservation techniques and zoning restrictions, including maintaining water quality, controlling sedimentation, restricting pesticide use near waterways, enforcing minimum setback requirements and streamside buffer zones, and using best management practices for timber harvesting, livestock grazing, and agriculture. Damming and channelization change the substrate and flow characteristics of streams, making them unsuitable for wood turtles. Woody debris in rivers provides turtles with cover and basking sites and should be retained when possible. Limiting recreational use of streams in prime wood turtle habitat also may be necessary.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has petitioned for the wood turtle to be protected under the Endangered Species Act. The service is working to improve survival rates, and in 2021 gave a $1 million grant to Northeast states to help them continue scientific collaboration to address the range-wide decline of the wood turtle.

Although the grant funding did not include Vermont, Briggs points out that there are a variety of resources available in Vermont for wood turtle habitat restoration including: the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service with funding for restoration on private land; the state’s river corridor easement program;  the Natural Resource Conservation Service that particularly eyes farmland; the Lake Champlain Basin Program funds restoration efforts including on public land; the Trees for Streams programs across the state fund tree plantings especially for riparian buffers; and work by the Friends of the Winooski to restore habitat will indirectly benefit wood turtles. 

“Lastly, if the federal Recovering America's Wildlife Act passes any time soon, that will be a game changer. States, including Vermont, could receive unprecedented increases in funding for non-game wildlife monitoring, habitat protection, and habitat restoration,” Briggs said. 

The wood turtle also is designated as a Species of Greatest Conservation Need in the state wildlife action plans of all 17 states in which they occur, and it is considered endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. 

While the wood turtle is in a precarious position across North America, we are very fortunate to have a population of wood turtles here in Waterbury. As I have shared, these animals have likely lived here for more than 5,000 years. May we offer the species the protection it needs to thrive in Waterbury for potentially another 5,000 years.

The Northeast Wood Turtle Working Group, part of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Wood Turtle research program, published “A Guide to Habitat Management for Wood Turtles” in 2021. 

Tom Scribner lives in Waterbury Center and started the nonprofit organization Friends of Hope Davey Park.