Avoiding extinction
Funds will help save wood turtles in Annapolis River watershed area
Clean Annapolis River Project can continue with wood turtle monitoring and stewardship in 2016-2017 thanks to support from the Nova Scotia Habitat Conservation Fund.
The Wood Turtle Monitoring and Stewardship Project aims to ensure the long-term persistence of the wood turtle, a species at risk, in the Annapolis River watershed. The wood turtle is listed both federally and provincially as threatened; a status assigned to species that are likely to become endangered if nothing is done to reverse the factors leading to its extirpation or extinction.
Field activities related to the project, such as visual surveys, radio-telemetry, and nest surveys and monitoring, take a great deal of manpower to complete. In response, CARP is focusing on developing volunteer capacity in communities that provide habitat for wood turtles. In 2015, volunteers con- tributed more than 460 hours to field activities in support of the project.
So far in 2016, 20 new volunteers have been trained in visual survey and radio-telemetry methods. An additional 30 students participating in CARP’s Youth Leading Environmental Change program, have also had the chance to receive training on field methods, and will continue to support the project throughout the field season.
Stewardship plans
The development of voluntary stewardship plans for private landowners and managers within the watershed are a key component of the project. These plans identify options that individuals can implement in order to mitigate threats, or to conserve or enhance habitat for wood turtles and other wildlife.
CARP is currently seeking landowners and managers in areas of wood turtle habitat that would be interested in developing a voluntary stewardship plan for their property. Community information sessions will be scheduled in the next few weeks. These meetings will provide information about the process of developing stewardship plans, and why it is critical to have private landowners involved in species at risk conservation.
While the project focuses on wood turtles, CARP said the project provides an opportunity to engage community members in stewardship activities that benefit a suite of wildlife species, supporting CARP’s mission of an ecologically healthy Annapolis River watershed.
About CARP
Clean Annapolis River Project is an environmental NGO that operates throughout the Annapolis River Watershed, with an office in Annapolis Royal. Its mission is to enhance the ecological health of the Annapolis River watershed through science, leadership and community engagement. For more information visit www.annapolisriver.ca