ANNUAL MEETING AND IBERA PRESENTATION:  WOOD TURTLE NESTS IN MAINE

Please join us to elect new board members and officers, followed by a presentation from the 2022 recipient of the Inez Boyd Environmental Research Award (IBERA). Trina Wantman will present findings from her academic research on “Nest site selection and hatchling success of Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) in central Maine.”  Wood turtles are an internationally-listed endangered species and a Priority 1 Species of Concern in Maine, so their ability to successfully reproduce is of great interest to researchers.  Trina, a master’s degree candidate in Ecology and Environmental Science at the University of Maine, used telemetry and time-lapse cameras to study how female wood turtles selected or rejected specific locations for laying their eggs.  She then examined those sites at a microhabitat level to try and identify the factors that influence final nest site selection.  Ultimately, the findings from Trina’s research could lead to increased protection for habitats that are both attractive to female wood turtles, and promote a higher percentage of surviving hatchlings.

This will be an indoor program at FPAC.