They have a bad reputation but are not aggressive, just defensive. They have long necks and can reach around and bite, though Pepino has never seen anyone bitten by a snapping turtle. Snapping turtles, which can grow to 30 pounds, require more care.For small turtles, pick them up from their midsection “like a sandwich,” McCrystal says: hands on either side, not just from the shell.Also, picking them up may startle them into peeing on you. The little ones will tuck into their shells, but, even so, don’t wag your fingers in front of their mouths. Turtles naturally consider humans predators. Never pick up a turtle by the tail these connect to the spine and can cause severe damage.All native turtles are protected by law in New York and can’t be “collected” without a permit. And certainly don’t bring a turtle home as a pet. You’re dropping them the human equivalent of thousands of miles away,” said McCrystal. If you relocate them and you’re not a rehabber, they will kill themselves to get back to where they belong. “You just want to help them across the dangerous part. Never drive a turtle to a spot you think it would like.If you put them back in the marsh, they will turn around,” Pepino said. “Maybe behind them there’s a beautiful marsh and they are heading to a sandy outcrop, but they are on the move for a specific reason. Doing otherwise will set their journey back. Only ever move a turtle in the direction it was already facing.If clear, you have two choices: approach and move the turtle, or passively act as a crossing guard, blocking traffic while the turtle does its thing. If safe, signal, pull off the road, put on your hazards and check for oncoming traffic.Don’t put yourself or others at risk,” Pepino said. “If it’s not safe for you to pull over, don’t. Then, when you see a turtle on the road, safety first. Next, stash some handy items in your car trunk: work gloves, cardboard, an old towel and hand sanitizer. Pepino said people interested in helping turtles cross roads can begin by watching turtle-handling videos, like this one from the DEC. Others place “Turtles Crossing” signs on their lawns near marshes. McCrystal tries to raise awareness by posting seasonal reminders on local online neighborhood pages like NextDoor, where there are a fair amount of individuals helping turtles, even without organized group outings. This is partly because turtle migration happens over many weeks between May and October, peaking in June, versus a few predictable warm nights each mud season. Groups show up yearly to help salamanders and frogs migrate, but turtles don’t have similar volunteer clout. In recent years, post-winter-hibernation amphibian crossings have gotten a lot of community love. They’ve survived multiple ice ages and extinction events, and while their hard shells do protect them some, they were never meant to shield them from cars. Turtles evolved 200-plus million years ago and are hardwired to get from wetland habitat to nesting areas, but there’s no way around the modern roads that have bisected their pathways. Not all eggs will hatch - some never develop or get eaten by predators. Snapping turtles may lay 25 to 50 eggs in a “clutch,” while a bog turtle only lays 1 to 4 eggs. ![]() “They are a really cool bunch of old ladies,” McCrystal said. Turtles can take 15 to 20 years before they start laying eggs, though, unlike mammals, their fertility doesn’t decline as they age. “Losing one adult female can have a real impact, especially for the declining species,” Pipino said. Human-aided turtle crossing helps maintain population numbers. These have larger populations than, say, Blanding’s turtles (threatened) and bog turtles (endangered), also found in the region. The snapping turtle and the painted turtle are the two most common. There are 10 species of turtles that migrate seasonally in the Hudson Valley, said Lisa Pipino, wildlife biologist and herpetologist at the state Department of Environmental Conservation. “If you see one, you will probably see more,” she said. Interested locals can look for turtles where waterways meet roadways in their neighborhoods. She grew up moving tortoises out west with her herpetologist father. Last year I saw 10 turtles between May and June crossing back and forth,” said a delighted McCrystal, the executive director at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary. ![]() “On my street in Ulster Park, there’s a pond downstream.
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