![]() Hibernation is believed to be necessary for the normal function of the thyroid gland. If not allowed to hibernate, these animals may be at risk for obesity. Healthy specimens deposit fat stores in preparation for hibernation. We are only beginning to understand the physiology of hibernation in reptiles, but it is becoming clear that it has health benefits. This is his way to pass winter, when foraging is limited and it is more beneficial to save energy.īut why would a happy, healthy reptile with plenty of food and comfortable, even temperatures need to hibernate? Before long, he may go into hibernation, the dormant state when certain animals “sleep,” with a corresponding drop in body temperature and metabolism. In the extended drought of our Mediterranean climate, turtles can estivate-hibernate, but during summer they dig down into the soil or reside in permanent pools of water or wet mud.As fall and winter arrive and the days grow shorter, your tortoise or box turtle will begin to slow down. During the cold months in much of the pond turtle’s range, they survive by hibernating. The body temperature of these organisms relies on the ambient environment for regulation, which then determines the metabolic rate. Not surprisingly, they suffer a lot of depredation, and 90 percent become food for other animals like raccoons, foxes, otters, snakes, largemouth bass, and even bullfrogs (a pesky, non-native species wreaking havoc on our aquatic environments).īut how do the adults get through frigid winters and our hot, dry summers? Turtles are poikilotherms, which is a Greek-derived word for “varying heat” or, in the common vernacular, cold-blooded. Even once the clutch of eggs hatches, which takes about three months, most of the mini-Oreo-size hatchlings stay underground through the winter, finally emerging in the spring. The female pond turtle digs a pear-size hole and lays anywhere from two to 12 eggs. She was searching for a suitable nesting site-ideally a south-facing slope with low vegetation and dry, hard soil. She was most likely over 10 years of age and actually could have been up to 50. The adult female western pond turtle has a rounded nose and speckled chin. Females also have dark markings on their throats. Males have concave plastrons, which facilitate mating, and the tails of the males tend to be thicker at the base. ![]() I knew it was a female because her plastron or underbelly shell was flat, not concave, and her tail was a bit thin. I made sure to position her in the same direction she was heading. I once saw a western pond turtle in rural Mendocino County crossing a busy highway in late May. I blocked traffic momentarily and carried her across the road to safety. They are considered “vulnerable” by California’s Department of Fish and Wildlife. Fish and Wildlife Service for listing as a threatened or endangered species. The western pond turtle is under review by the U.S. The sliders have been released by pet owners, and this more fecund species occupies the same niche as our native species and is outcompeting them for food. Unfortunately, there are also two relatively common nonnative turtles that have been introduced into California-the invasive red-eared slider and the western painted turtle. And “pond” is a bit of a misnomer they frequent nearly all kinds of water-roadside ditches, sloughs, creeks, marshes, and lakes. pallida), which live north of the Central Coast and to the south, respectively. The turtle has ranged from Baja California to British Columbia, although its taxonomy is, in a word, complicated it’s generally agreed that it is two species (which we’ll call Emys marmorata and E. I am assuming you are referring to our only native freshwater turtle-the western pond turtle-which you might see basking in the sun and then quickly kerplunking right into the water. Where do turtles go in the winter and summer? -Alma, Sebastopol
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