2026
While threats vary from region to region, globally turtles are considered one of the most at-risk vertebrate groups on earth. In Ontario specifically, all eight species of freshwater turtle are federally listed species at risk, while seven are listed as at-risk at the provincial level. They face a multitude of threats, including road mortality, habitat loss, poaching and persecution by humans, subsidized predation, and more. Road mortality is considered one of the most significant threats because turtles must frequently cross roads to access different wetlands used for nesting, mating, feeding, and overwintering, with some turtles in Ontario’s Highlands crossing as many as 12 roads each year. Near human settlement, unnaturally high predator populations can also result in extremely high nest predation rates, with many nests destroyed within hours of being laid, severely limiting natural recruitment. Turtles are a particularly iconic wildlife within The Land Between bioregion, an expansive landform running from Parry Sound and Orillia in the east to the Ottawa Valley in the west. As an ecotone, The Land Between is an area of transition between the rocky, rugged Canadian Shield and the fertile, arable St. Lawrence lowlands. This creates a landscape like nowhere else in Ontario, where elements of both ecosystems, as well as rare and unique habitats including wetlands, forests, grasslands, and rock barrens, occur in close proximity. The landscape remains relatively intact compared to southern Ontario and contains the highest density of rock and pocketed water systems in the province, creating exceptionally important habitat for ectothermic wildlife such as turtles. As a result, The Land Between is believed to harbour roughly one third of Ontario’s freshwater turtle abundance, making it one of the province’s most important strongholds for turtle conservation. Despite this refuge, our estimates indicate turtle population declines here are significant- losses of upwards of 20% in many areas have occurred in the last twenty years. Given the importance of turtles to The Land Between and their high conservation risk, The Land Between charity, a conservation organization dedicated to protecting the region, created the Turtle Guardians program in 2017. This hands-on program operates to rescue turtles from roads while collecting important information for one of the longest running turtle road ecology studies of its kind in North America. The program also protects vulnerable nests in areas with high predation or human disturbance by carefully excavating eggs for incubation and later releasing hatchlings back into the wild. In addition, Turtle Guardians educates the public about Ontario’s turtles and mobilizes community members, providing interactive training, growing an extensive skilled volunteer network. Today, Turtle Guardians operates the largest turtle incubation program in Ontario’s Highlands and works to ensure turtles remain part of this landscape into the future by protecting both adult turtles are increasing hatchling survival. This preventative recovery work complements broader conservation efforts, including academic research initiatives, and organizations that focus on cure, such as the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre, which rehabilitates and releases injured turtles as well hatches the eggs from injured mothers. Efforts, such as those supporting Spiny Softshell Turtle recovery in Ontario, have demonstrated how bookending conservation through guardianship of adults along with increasing hatchling survival can help prevent local population declines. Benefits of protecting freshwater turtles extend far beyond turtles themselves; turtles play an important role in maintaining healthy aquatic ecosystems by dispersing seeds, nutrient cycling, removing detritus to keep freshwater systems clean and supporting diversity.
The two core benefits to freshwater turtles resulting from Turtle Guardians’ work are reducing adult mortality through road rescue efforts and increasing recruitment into local turtle populations through nest rescue. Ontario’s freshwater turtles take anywhere from 10 to 20 years on average to reach sexual maturity, and relatively few hatchlings survive long enough to reproduce. Because of this, populations are highly dependent on both adult survival and successful recruitment of young. Coupled with the fact that road mortality is considered one of the greatest threats facing Ontario’s freshwater turtles, while unnaturally high predation rates near human settlements can destroy many nests within hours of being laid, both adult rescue and nest protection are critical recovery actions. To date, Turtle Guardians has rescued nearly 20,000 adult turtles from high mortality road corridors, largely within the Central Highlands (Haliburton and north Peterborough) parts of The Land Between. In addition to migrating across roads, one of the primary reasons turtles are vulnerable along roads is because roadsides provide attractive nesting habitat. The warm, loose gravel substrate and open exposure to sunlight create favourable conditions for egg laying and incubation, drawing many turtles to road shoulders during nesting season. As a result, both adult turtles and their nests are placed at risk from vehicles. Even along quieter roads or driveways, nests remain highly vulnerable due to unnaturally high predation rates from species such as raccoons, skunks, and foxes that are often concentrated near human settlements and easily follow these open corridors. Turtle Guardians responds to these threats by rescuing vulnerable nests under wildlife permits and incubating eggs at our headquarters until hatchlings emerge and can be released back into suitable wetlands near natal sites. This work significantly increases hatchling survival and supports recruitment into local turtle populations in areas where natural nest success is increasingly limited. To date, Turtle Guardians has released more than 52,600 hatchlings through this recovery effort. Additionally important are Turtle Guardians’ efforts to engage the public in turtle conservation through interactive training, community science, youth programming, public talks, and other outreach initiatives. Through these programs, community members develop practical skills in turtle identification, safe road rescue, monitoring along with data capture and reporting, and broader stewardship, while gaining a deeper understanding of the threats facing Ontario’s freshwater turtles and how they can help address them. This work is vital in reducing road mortality, as trained community members are better able to identify turtles on roads, safely assist turtles crossing roads, report vulnerable nests or injured turtles, and support broader conservation efforts. It also helps dispel myths that contribute to persecution, while encouraging stewardship practices that can reduce poaching and habitat degradation. Many participants go on to become long term volunteers and community leaders within Turtle Guardians’ conservation network. Today, Turtle Guardians relies on more than 800 volunteers, nearly 200 of whom are highly active in conducting road surveys, nest response, rescue efforts, and outreach. The benefits of this work extend beyond turtles alone. Participation strengthens connections to nature, supports physical and mental well being, and often serves as a gateway to broader environmental stewardship and conservation leadership throughout The Land Between.
