Reading a new turtle book stirred memories of Rich’s boyhood near Cedar Lake in New Jersey.
The book, The Natural History of the Turtles of Iowa, by Terry Vandewalle and Neil P. Bernstein is Iowa focused but applies to turtles over a great swath of North America.
Poking Around Cedar Lake
Snappers have powerful jaws.
During his adolescent and high school years Rich spent hours in, on, or around the 99-acre lake. “I remember rowing through a weedy area and pausing to watch a musk turtle walk along the muddy bottom. I’d often see painted turtles, which I called painters, basking in the sun. Every once in a while, the triangular head of a giant snapper would pierce the surface. Then, there were Eastern box turtles and wood turtles that I’d spot while walking,” he recalled.
Although Cedar Lake is a thousand miles east of Iowa, according to the authors our state has musks, snappers, painters, and box and wood turtles, although the last is the Ornate Box Turtle, a Midwestern species.
Turtles of Iowa book
Reading through the new book brought more than pleasant memories. It provided accurate, current information on the natural history of all of Iowa’s wild turtles. It also created sadness at the plight of these amazing and beautiful reptiles.
The book has two general sections. The second and largest is a description of each species found in our state. It’s packed with natural history information and photos of adults, juveniles, and even turtle eggs and nests.
Decline of Turtle Habitat
The first section can leave a reader depressed. Turtles have a hard time living amid the massive habitat changes and direct exploitation caused by people. Although these changes also take place across the continent Iowa, perhaps, is an extreme example.
Turtles that thrive in prairies and wetlands saw their world contract by close to 100% through conversion to row crops, cities, and roads. No habitat, no turtles. They hang on in pockets of appropriate habitat. Perhaps more alarming is the theft of these noble reptiles by people for pets and the turtle meat market. On top of that, many are squashed by cars as they try to cross roads.
No Kidnapping Allowed!
AToo many people can’t seem to resist picking up a box turtle and taking it home. Kidnapping any species, especially turtles, is bad. Caring for a captured turtle is tricky and often results in its death. If it is released away from its home, the animal’s amazing homing ability stimulates a quest to walk home…….and face death on every road it crosses. Some turtles are caught and sold as pets. Others are sold for their meat. Collection is adding population stress to animals suffering habitat loss. Don’t do this! Enjoy them from a distance and let them go on their way.
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- Yellow Mud Turtle in grasses.
Iowa’s Turtles
Vandewalle and Bernstein graphically describe the plight of today’s turtles while offering hints of optimism. For example, the Iowa Department of Transportation crafted a tunnel under the new Highway 100 near Cedar Rapids. It’s become a safe way for Blandings and other turtles to cross under the busy road.
This book is a good read. This Bur Oak guide is published by the University of Iowa Press. For information or to order it visit University of Iowa Press. It can also be purchased from Amazon.
