Like many turtles, hatchling diamondback terrapins are more vulnerable to predators and may have a difficult time finding food. The tiny turtles generally have a low rate of survival in the wild.
By spending the winter months in an aquarium with a regular supply of food, our head-started terrapins are much larger than their brothers and sisters back on Poplar Island that spent the winter hibernating.
According to Dr. Willem Roosenburg of Ohio University, and the lead scientist of this project, the size of these head-started turtles at nine months may be same as wild terrapins that are 3-5 years old!
For our budding third grade scientists, you might be interested to know that Dr. Roosenburg grew up right here in Calvert County!
To learn more about Dr. Roosenburg's work, click on the video button below.