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Bog turtle (Northern DPS) Listed: 11/4/1997 Status since listing: Unknown The bog turtle (Glyptemys muhlenbergii) occurs in two separate populations [1]. The northern population was listed as threatened in 1997 and occurs in Massachusetts (three sites), Connecticut (five sites), New York (37 sites), New Jersey (165 sites), Pennsylvania (75 sites), Delaware (four sites), and Maryland (61 sites). The southern population is not listed as an endangered/threatened species, but is protected under the Endangered Species Act's "similarity of appearance" category because it is indistinguishable by sight from the northern population. It occurs in Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Tennessee.Bog turtles usually occur in small, discrete populations, usually in open-canopy sedge meadows and fens bordered by wooded areas [1]. These wetlands are a mosaic of micro-habitats that include dry pockets, saturated areas and areas that are periodically flooded. Bog turtles depend on the diversity of micro-habitats for foraging, nesting, basking, hibernation and shelter. Unfragmented riparian systems that are sufficiently dynamic to allow the natural creation of open habitat are needed to compensate for ecological succession. Beaver, deer and cattle may be instrumental in maintaining the open-canopy wetlands. Northern bog turtle populations declined by about 50% between 1980 and 2000 due to habitat loss and collection [1]. Although the number of known sites increased from 191 in 1996 to 350 in 2001, this increase was due to survey effort rather than population growth [1]. Most of the new sites are small, in poor condition and threatened with development; their discovery did not alter species' threatened status. Substantial monitoring programs have not been established, so the species' trend since listing is unknown [2]. To delist the bog turtle, the 2001 federal recovery plan requires that: 1) Long-term protection is secured for at least 185 populations distributed among five recovery units: Peninsula/Lake Plain Recovery Unit (10), Outer Coastal Plain Recovery Unit (5), Hudson-Housatonic Unit (40), Susquehanna-Potomac Recovery Unit (50) and Delaware Recovery Unit (80); 2) Monitoring at five-year intervals over a 25-year period shows that these 185 populations are stable; 3) Illicit collection and trade no longer constitute a threat to this species’ survival; 4) Long- [1] U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2001. Bog Turtle (Clemmys muhlenbergii), Northern Population, Recovery Plan. Hadley, Massachusetts. 103 pp. |
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