St. Louis Box Turtle Project

Using box turtle as ambassadors, we also provide outreach to inform on the importance of conservation of local species. Louis Box Turtle Project was initiated in the spring of 2012 in response to 1) the growing threats facing box turtles in the Midwest and across the USA, 2) the lack of awareness of these problems, 3) the increasing disconnect between young people and the outdoors, 4) the incredible opportunity that exists on our doorsteps to experience nature, including box turtles, and 5) the paucity of scientific information vailable to help inform box turtle conservation. The well-known turtle biologist Archie Carr once noted that “everyone likes box turtles,” but how many St. Louisans know that wild, native box turtles are residents of parks in the heart of the City and surrounding countryside? Or that turtle numbers are probably declining throughout the state of Missouri due to road kills, habitat loss, and possibly disease? The goal of this project is to promote conservation of local urban and rural box turtles by improving our understanding of the ranging patterns, ecology, and health status of these delightful animals, and developing an education and outreach program. We work in Forest Park, one of the nation’s iconic urban parks that lies in the heart of St. Louis, and Tyson Research Center, a protected 2,000 acre natural area 18 miles from Forest Park. Our work at each site involves radio-tracking of box turtles to understand ranging behavior, surveys to estimate the abundance and distribution of turtles, research on turtle health status, and outreach to young people.