Why did the Turtle Cross the Road?
Well he crosses for lots of good reasons, but HOW he crosses can be just as important. If you see a turtle crossing a road, you can offer it a helping hand. Rosemary Conroy gives you a few pointers.
Something Wild: Crossing Turtles
Air date: 6/6/03
Welcome to this week’s edition of Something Wild.
I’m Rosemary Conroy for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.
When I was little and needed to get to the other side of my street, I used to ask people to “cross me.”
Now, at this time of year, when looking for mates or places to lay eggs, turtles often need to get to the other side of the road. But that isn’t a very safe thing for them to do.
But turtles, being turtles, won’t stop to ask anyone to cross them. But that doesn’t mean you can’t offer a helping hand. If you see a turtle at the edge of a road, I say, “Cross them!”
A couple of guidelines: First, of course, don’t put yourself in danger. Second, turtles are territorial, so don’t try to help by moving them someplace safer. Take the turtle in the direction it is headed.
Finally, be prepared for some misunderstanding — after all, a giant hand swooping you up doesn’t usually mean good things. Hold the turtle away from you as it may pee in self-defense. Move it gently but quickly.
Now, snapping turtles are not easy to pick up — they can reach around and bite you. I carry a snow shovel in my car to scoop them up. It works even for very large snappers — and provides a nice comic break in your day.
Turtles have been around unchanged for millions of years — they were basically perfect until the automobile came around. While we cannot help them evolve any faster, we can help individuals survive, at least.
Many turtle species don’t start breeding until they several years old — so many of the turtles you cross maybe over a decade old. I don’t know how much that is in human years, but it deserves some respect.
So — help your elders and cross a turtle today!
Something Wild is a joint production of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, NHPR, and the Audubon Society of New Hampshire.
For Something Wild, I’m Rosemary Conroy.
to view actual article here is the link: http://www.nhpr.org/node/4835
