Western painted turtle hatchings will soon begin emerging from their nests and the conservation groups will invite students and the public to learn about the animals.
The Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program (FWCP) and the Rocky Mountain Naturalists (RMN) will be at Elizabeth Lake on Earth Day, April 22 to celebrate Turtle Day 2025 by educating the public about the vulnerable, blue-listed species.
“Turtle Day is a great opportunity for the public to come and learn more about western painted turtles,” said Angus Glass FWCP spokesperson.
“They have a unique annual cycle and they face a number of threats in our area. We’re working with the Rocky Mountain Naturalists to try to protect the local population.”
Glass says western painted turtles are the only terrestrial turtle species native to British Columbia.
“They’ve evolved some pretty interesting characteristics to survive our northern winters here,” explained Glass.
“The turtle nesting areas are used 11+ months of the year because the hatchlings typically come out of their eggs in the fall, but they stay in the grounds. It’s too cold and there’s not enough forage for them if they emerge in the fall, so they stay in the ground until right now – in the spring.”
Glass says the turtles are listed as a vulnerable species because they face several threats to their environment.
“As a low-elevation species, those kinds of habitats are sought after for urbanization, transportation, resource extraction, and other forms of habitat loss,” said Glass.
“Another threat is predation and highway mortality. This is where the RMN come in: they built a fence around the nesting area to reduce highway mortality.”
The Elizabeth Lake nesting area is maintained by the RMN working with biologists for the Province of B.C., with funding from the FWCP.
Glass says Turtle Day is a great opportunity to learn about the animals in their natural habitat.
“We have a number of stations set up. We have an artificial nesting area so people can see how the nests are dug and what goes on, we have a dipping area to see what kind of food the hatchlings and adults typically eat,” said Glass.
“And of course, we have the hatchlings on display for people to see.”
However, Glass says there is no guarantee that you will see the baby turtles, as they are coming out of their nests on their own.
Students will get tours of the nesting sites and demonstration areas in the morning on April 22, while the public will be allowed to join from 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Visitors are asked to leave their dogs at home.
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