The Big Turtle Year

The Big Turtle Year is an initiative of the Florida Turtle Conservation Trust, a conservation NGO formed in 1999 by a group of biologists and conservationists concerned with the conservation outlook for Florida turtles. The FTCT is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization designated by the IRS and donations are tax-deductible as allowable by law. Fifty-nine turtle species occur in the United States and many are of conservation concern. While species from areas such as Asia, South America, and Madagascar often receive the majority of conservation attention, the plight of North American species quietly goes unnoticed. The Big Turtle Year (2017) will emphasize the rich diversity, ecology, and conservation needs of species found in the United States.

The Big Turtle Year is a conservation education project that will increase awareness regarding the status of these often overlooked animals. Florida Turtle Conservation Trust researchers (see below) will visit numerous sites accompanied by other researchers and conservationists in an effort to see as many species as possible during a single year, while examining threats and conservation needs. The project's progress will be featured at www.thebigturtleyear.org , promoted via Facebook, and presented at several organizational conferences and meetings (both during and after the project).

Five main field trips (7-10 days each) are being organized for the regions listed below, in addition to multiple shorter trips within Florida. 

Northeast (Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts)

Southeast (Alabama, Lousiana, and Mississippi)

Midwest (Illinois and Michigan)

Southwest (California and Arizona)

Texas

Many partners with diverse backgrounds will be joining us in the field to lend their expertise in finding target species and will share unique  perspectives on turtle conservation issues in their area.

The funding amount requested is for mostly travel-related costs (airfare, car rental, fuel, lodging) for the  15,000+ mile journey that the project will take us on.

The IUCN Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group reports that approximately 58% of all turtles are threatened with extinction. A long list of diverse threats to both common and highly endangered tortoise and freshwater turtle species have been identified globally. Among the greatest are habitat loss and degradation; collection for the food, pet, and traditional medicinal trade; road mortality; and predation. Working in negative synergy, these threats are creating a perfect storm for the most endangered wildlife taxa in the world. Certainly, these threats present broad and immediate conservation challenges. Despite the urgency of the situation, opportunities for conservation are abundant and the charismatic attraction of turtles makes them an excellent group for education and outreach efforts to enhance ecological, conservation, and environmental awareness.

Although we are a small organization, we are proud of our achievements over the past 17 years.  Past public support and grants have enabled us to complete many significant projects including:

•   Florida panhandle riverine turtle projects: offered two public lectures on map turtles at Chipola College (Marianna) and Pensacola State College, donated 115 copies of books on Florida turtles to all public school libraries in the counties bordering the Apalachicola and Escambia rivers, and organized a habitat cleanup at Spring Creek (Marianna).

•   Tampa Bay’s Diamondback Terrapins: A Community-based Conservation Education Program: funded by a grant from the Tampa Bay Estuary Program, FTCT developed an educator’s guide (1,400 copies) and educational material for the public, purchased 8,000 bycatch reduction devices (BRDs) for distribution, offered workshops for educators and crabbers, and facilitated a symposium for environmental professionals.

•   Gopher Tortoises + Prescribed Fire = Increased Biodiversity: lecture series and guided interpretive hikes offered at multiple Tampa Bay nature preserves; emphasized the significant ecological role played by this imperiled keystone species.

•   Suwannee cooter research and conservation project: For over a decade, the FTCT has researched anthropogenic threats, particularly the impacts of illegal harvest and boat strikes on this species. Current work addresses the need for a better understanding of this riverine turtle’s distribution within its southern range.

Who we are:

George L. Heinrich (Heinrich Ecological Services, Florida Turtle Conservation Trust)

George is a field biologist and environmental educator specializing in Florida reptiles. His company, Heinrich Ecological Services, is based in St. Petersburg, Florida, USA and conducts wildlife surveys and research, natural history programming, and nature-based tours. A graduate of Memphis State University, his interests include southeastern upland, riverine, and brackish wetland ecosystems; conservation challenges facing Florida’s non-marine turtles; and the role of education in conserving herpetofauna. Current collaborative research projects focus on three imperiled species: the gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus), diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin), and Suwannee cooter (Pseudemys concinna suwanniensis). George is an invited member of the IUCN Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group, served twice as co-chair of the Gopher Tortoise Council, and is the executive director of the Florida Turtle Conservation Trust. He has received a number of awards from state and regional NGOs for his conservation and environmental education work, the most recent being the Golden LEEF Award for Outstanding Contribution to Florida Environmental Education from the League of Environmental Educators in Florida.

Timothy J. Walsh (Bruce Museum, Florida Turtle Conservation Trust)

From the age of ten, Tim has been actively involved in herpetology and has been fortunate to turn a childhood hobby into a rewarding career. At age twelve, Dr. Jim Layne of the Archbold Biological Station mentored him and helped guide his scientific interests. He went on to receive a degree in Zoo Animal Technology and has worked in the zoo/aquaria/museum field for twenty-three years including spending three years as Collection Manager with Dr. Peter C. H. Pritchard at the Chelonian Research Institute. Tim has been involved in a variety of field projects with such species as Suwannee cooters, Carolina diamondback terrapins, and spotted turtles, and is an invited member of the IUCN Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group. Tim is an avid outdoorsman, accomplished photographer, and book collector. Later in life, Tim earned a Master's Degree in Museum Studies through the University of Leicester, England. His current position is Manager of Natural History Collections and Citizen Science with the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut.