The North Carolina Division of Coastal Management’s North Carolina Coastal Reserve and partners from the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission, N.C. State Parks, Bald Head Island Conservancy, N.C. Audubon, N.C. Aquariums, and National Park Service are recruiting volunteers to participate in the 2021 Terrapin Tally. Established in partnership with the Wildlife Commission, this citizen science project was created to collect population data to better understand the status of diamondback terrapins in the state.
This unique volunteer opportunity is compatible with current COVID-19 safety guidance and Governor Cooper’s executive orders. The activities will include a mandatory training program that has been adapted to be fully virtual in 2021. Field data collection activities, which require teams of two volunteers to work together, can be completed by members of the same household or while maintaining appropriate social distancing in an outdoor setting. Additional safety guidance will be provided during training.
All volunteers must register to attend one virtual training, where they will learn how to use the smartphone application and sign up for one or more field data collection sessions scheduled April 28 through May 16. Participants must have their own smartphone, kayak or canoe, and life jacket. Volunteers can learn more about the project and register at https://tinyurl.com/2021TerrapinTally and contact terrapin.tally.nc@gmail.com with questions.
“Hundreds of volunteers have collected population data at the Masonboro Island Reserve annually since the first Terrapin Tally in 2014,” says Hope Sutton, stewardship coordinator and southern sites manager for the Coastal Reserve. “Terrapins must surface to breathe air, so trained volunteers are able to conduct head count surveys by kayak. This project provides a fun way for the community to get involved with important conservation work.”
Diamondback terrapins are found in salt marshes, estuaries, and mangrove swamps along the East and Gulf Coasts of the United States. This turtle is the only reptile that can tolerate brackish water environments, where salinity levels are constantly changing due to freshwater runoff from land mixing with saltwater from the ocean. Once historically abundant, habitat loss, coastal development, past commercial harvest, and fishing interactions have all contributed to the decline of diamondback terrapins. As a Species of Special Concern in North Carolina, monitoring provides valuable information about the status and distributions of the populations.
“We know relatively little about our populations of diamondback terrapins in North Carolina,” says Sarah Finn, biologist with N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission. “As a Species of Special Concern facing many threats, it is imperative that we conduct surveys to identify where populations occur. With continued surveys, we can begin to analyze population trends,” says Finn.
The data collected from the Terrapin Tally have contributed to new research projects and management decisions regarding diamondback terrapin populations that utilize the Masonboro Island Reserve. “When we better understand how populations of diamondback terrapins are doing in our state, we can make more informed management decisions to protect terrapins,” says Finn. “For example, we can identify areas where terrapins are relatively abundant and recommend management actions for these areas.” says Finn.
For the seventh season of the Terrapin Tally, the project is expanding to include numerous federal, state, and local partners and ten new sites, spanning the coast from Carteret County to Brunswick County. The 2021 Terrapin Tally sites include Cape Lookout National Seashore, Rachel Carson Reserve, Pine Knoll Shores, Hammocks Beach State Park, Lea Hutaff Island, Masonboro Island Reserve, Carolina Beach State Park, Ft. Fisher State Recreation Area, Zeke's Island Reserve, Bald Head Island, and Bird Island Reserve.
“We are excited to see this project grow to a larger area of the state in 2021 and are thrilled to be working with so many great partners. We hope to recruit hundreds of citizen scientists to collect data and we’re sure they will become as passionate about this unique turtle as we are!” said Sutton.
The North Carolina Division of Coastal Management (DCM), a division of the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, works to protect, conserve and manage North Carolina's coastal resources in the 20 coastal counties. The N.C. Coastal Reserve and National Estuarine Research Reserve, a program of DCM, protects natural areas for education, research and compatible traditional uses. Since its creation in 1989, the program has preserved more than 44,000 acres of unique coastal environments at 10 sites along the coast.