Spatial use and selection of habitat in a reintroduced population of alligator snapping turtles (Macrochelys temminckii)

Published source details Moore D.B., Ligon D.B., Fillmore B.M. & Fox S.F. (2014) Spatial use and selection of habitat in a reintroduced population of alligator snapping turtles (Macrochelys temminckii). Southeastern Naturalist, 59, 30-37.
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This study is summarised as evidence for the following.

	Action	Category
	Release captive-bred reptiles into the wild: Tortoises, terrapins, side-necked & softshell turtles Action Link

Release captive-bred reptiles into the wild: Tortoises, terrapins, side-necked & softshell turtles

A study in 2007–2008 in along a river in Oklahoma, USA (Moore et al. 2014; same experimental set-up as Moore et al. 2013) found that following release into the wild, most juvenile captive-bred alligator snapping turtles Macrochelys temminckii and subadults recovered from a turtle farm survived at least one summer in the wild. After one year, 24 of 32 (75%) released alligator snapping turtles were still alive. Two turtles were lost within 45 days of release and a further six turtles were lost by the beginning of the second year in the wild (see original paper for details). Captive-bred juveniles dispersed similar distances after release (765 m) as released subadults from turtle farms (769 m), but had smaller home ranges (captive-bred: 730 m; turtle farm: 1,789 m). In June 2007, sixteen captive-bred juvenile turtles (bred and reared in the Tishomingo National Fish Hatchery; born in 2002 or 2004) were radio-tagged and released into a single site (a river reach adjacent to the Washita River). In 2006, sixteen subadult alligator snapping turtles recovered from a turtle farm were radio-tagged and released at the same location. A further 250 turtles from the turtle farm were released at six locations in 2007 (monitoring data not provided). Turtles were monitored weekly during the summer months in 2007 and 2008.

(Summarised by: Katie Sainsbury)