Northern Map Turtle
It’s been a good year for seeing Northern Map Turtles. They live in large, slow-moving rivers and lakes with a soft, mucky bottom and plenty of logs or rocks for basking, and while they are abundant in places like Petrie Island (before the floods, anyway) and the causeway at the Morris Island Conservation Area, I have rarely ever seen any close to home. This year, however, I found these turtles in three different places in Ottawa’s west end, fairly close to shore where they often find places to bask in the sun.
The Northern Map Turtle is considered to be a species at risk, as it is listed as Special Concern under both the Ontario Endangered Species Act, 2007 and the Federal Species at Risk Act, as well as being designated as a Specially Protected Reptile under the Ontario Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act. However, given the current political climate of favouring development over the protection of at-risk wildlife and the ecosystems in which they live, it is uncertain how long these laws and protections will remain in existence. Threats to the Northern Map Turtle include water pollution (due to its effect on molluscs, a primary food source), habitat loss and degradation, shoreline development, road mortality, fish hooks, and boat propellers. I’m not sure as to why I’m now seeing them along the shore of the Ottawa River within the city, or if that’s a good thing or bad thing – are they moving closer to shore because they have lost habitat elsewhere? Or are numbers doing so well that turtles are seeking new places to live? Fortunately, these turtles do not seem to hold much interest for poachers, as they are rarely used for food or the illegal pet trade.
I saw my first Northern Map Turtle of the year in the pond at Andrew Haydon Park in late June. I was scanning the shoreline for dragonflies when I noticed a snout emerge from the water only a few feet away from me. I used my binoculars to check it out, expecting to see a Snapping Turtle, but was surprised to see the yellow markings on its head and shell instead. I had never seen a Northern Map Turtle at Andrew Haydon Park before, probably because there is too much human activity on the water and too few basking spots when the river is high. Somehow this fellow found its way to the pond and decided to stick around.
Northern Map Turtle
This species gets its name from the markings on its shell, which resemble contour lines on a topographical map. Both the body and the upper shell are covered in fine yellow lines, and there is a distinct yellow spot behind the eyes. The upper shell has a distinct ridge running down the length of its shell and serrated edges at the rear. A fully-grown female can be as twice as large as a fully-grown male, measured by the length of the shell; a female can reach up to 27 cm compared to the male’s 13 cm. It is smaller than the Snapping Turtle, and interestingly enough, I found a Snapping Turtle in the other pond a few minutes later! I saw its head emerge from the water long enough to confirm its identity, but it was much further out from the shore and didn’t stay above the surface long enough for any photos.
Even more interesting than that, I had also seen a Blanding’s Turtle and some Painted Turtles earlier that day on another trail – I don’t think I’ve ever seen all four common Ottawa species on the same day before! While the Painted Turtle is the most abundant species in our region, and the species most commonly seen by people, the Snapping Turtle is the second-most commonly seen species because it inhabits a much wider variety of wetland habitats. I found one at Mud Lake early in July that appeared to be stalking the Wood Ducks at the dock looking for food.
Snapping Turtle
There was a Northern Leopard Frog sitting on a lily pad in the same area, and I snapped a photo when I saw a fly land on its nose. Only after I saw the photo at home did I realize that it still had a tail! Frogs are included among the herptiles, which includes both reptiles and amphibians, so I thought I’d include this photo in this post. Interestingly, birds fall under the same taxonomic umbrella as reptiles (clade Sauropsida), and in terms of genetics, crocodilians are more closely related to birds than they are to other living reptiles! Herpetology is limited to the study of reptiles and amphibians (which do not fall under clade Sauropsida) and excludes birds, which is covered under the study of ornithology.
Northern Leopard Frog
I didn’t see any Northern Map Turtles again until August. While searching for dragonflies along the Ottawa River in a different area I saw one basking on a rock fairly close to the shore with its mouth open. The unique head shape is visible in this image:
Northern Map Turtle
They must be doing well enough along this stretch of the river, for on my next visit I found not one, but three adults sunning themselves on the rocks together!
Northern Map Turtle
This photo shows a small damselfly flying by – based on the white thorax and abdomen tip, it is a Powdered Dancer, a species common in rocky areas along the Ottawa and Rideau Rivers.
Northern Map Turtle
Northern Map Turtle
Also that month, I saw a very young Northern Map Turtle in the pond at Andrew Haydon Park! It was perching on a log until a person passed by too quickly, then plopped down into the water. I thought I had lost the opportunity to photograph it until I came back a little later and saw it swimming in the water, its head emerging from time to time. It finally clambered up onto a rock to continue its sun-bathing. I contacted a friend at the CWF who has been monitoring turtle nesting sites this summer to see if they had released any hatchlings in this area, and he told me that they had found no nests in that area nor conducted any releases. This little fellow managed to hatch and find its way to the pond all on its own!
Northern Map Turtle
One of the reasons why turtles are considered at risk is because it takes many years for the females to reach sexual maturity. Female Northern Map Turtles are not able to breed until they are at least 12 years old, which means that many do not survive long enough to produce offspring. Nesting occurs from June through July, and a female typically lays a single clutch of up to 17 eggs. The young turtles hatch in the late summer, or may overwinter in the nest if the weather is too cold. Not all eggs are lucky enough to result in a viable hatchling; predators such as raccoons, foxes, and even birds may feed on the eggs before they hatch.
The last Northern Map Turtle I saw in August was not found along the Ottawa River, but the much smaller Jock River. I was surprised to see it basking on a log in the middle of the river; I thought they preferred larger bodies of water with plenty of downed trees or rocks for basking on. This is the only one I can recall seeing somewhere other than the Ottawa River.
My last Northern Map Turtle of the year was at the Morris Island Conservation Area in early September, where I saw several individuals resting on the stumps emerging from the bay along the causeway. Like Painted Turtles, they bask in groups; where there is one there are usually quite a few. It was great to see so many this year, in four different spots! As they are usually quite far out from the shore in places like Petrie Island and Morris Island, it was a treat to see them so close and get some of my best photos of this species to date!
The Pathless Wood 