Out of the Zoo and into the Wild
Blanding’s turtles “head-started” at Detroit Zoo are released into native habitat.
The nomadic tendencies of the Blanding’s turtle prompted the Detroit Zoological Society (DZS) to partner in a conservation project in 2011 for the Michigan reptile – and now those efforts are paying off. The Blanding’s turtle habitually travels up to a mile from its aquatic habitat to lay its eggs, leaving the nest vulnerable to predators when it returns to the water. In an endeavor to protect nests at the Shiawassee National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in Saginaw, Mich., from predation by raccoons, 63 eggs were collected, incubated and brought to the Detroit Zoo last fall to begin a nurturing process called “head-starting”. The DZS recently released 12 of the hatchlings into their native habitat at the Shiawassee NWR. Students from University …
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