Nesting and El Nino

[Marguerite Whilden]

Marguerite Whilden

June 20, 2005 at 3:42 pm #21185

See attached regarding River Terrapin. Does anyone know why El Nino would affect river terrapin nesting. thanks mw Monday June 20, 2005 River terrapin population in Perak facing extinction IPOH: River terrapins, once found in huge numbers in Sungai Perak, are facing extinction following a sharp decline in the number of females of the species. Only 25 terrapins landed at the river_s sandy bank to lay eggs during the recent season which ended in February. The terrapins, which make their way upstream, each lay 20 to 40 eggs per season. Perak Tengah Wildlife chief Mohd Nazri Idrus said the decline started in 2002. Then, 68 terrapins came ashore compared with 181 the previous year. __The sudden drop of terrapin landings in 2002 was due to the El-Nino effect. Since then the number of terrapin landings has continued to plunge by more than 50% each season,__ he said. __We are a bit worried that the reptiles are in danger of extinction. Mohd Nazri, who is also the caretaker of the River Terrapin Conservation and Breeding Centre in Bota Kanan, about 60km from here, blamed pollution for the dwindling terrapin numbers. _ 1995-2005 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd (Co No 10894-D) Marguerite WhildenThe Terrapin InstituteP. O. Box 51Edgewater, MD 21037Voice 410 370 9171FAX 410 757 9268www.terrapininstitute.org “It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change.”

[modelgrafx@aol.com]

modelgrafx@aol.com

June 20, 2005 at 7:52 pm #21186

I don’t know if this would have anything to do with it but here in southern California I have heard that El Nino causes red tides that are toxic. Supposedly the red tides form when the water temperatures rise and there is a huge bloom of algae. At least this is what I have heard. If it is true maybe the terrapins are eating something that has been affected by a red tide and are either dying or their fertility is affected??? I may be totally crazy… Vickie —–Original Message—–From: Marguerite Whilden See attached regarding River Terrapin. Does anyone know why El Nino would affect river terrapin nesting. thanks mw Monday June 20, 2005 River terrapin population in Perak facing extinction IPOH: River terrapins, once found in huge numbers in Sungai Perak, are facing extinction following a sharp decline in the number of females of the species. Only 25 terrapins landed at the river’s sandy bank to lay eggs during the recent season which ended in February. The terrapins, which make their way upstream, each lay 20 to 40 eggs per season. Perak Tengah Wildlife chief Mohd Nazri Idrus said the decline started in 2002. Then, 68 terrapins came ashore compared with 181 the previous year. “The sudden drop of terrapin landings in 2002 was due to the El-Nino effect. Since then the number of terrapin landings has continued to plunge by more than 50% each season,” he said. “We are a bit worried that the reptiles are in danger of extinction. Mohd Nazri, who is also the caretaker of the River Terrapin Conservation and Breeding Centre in Bota Kanan, about 60km from here, blamed pollution for the dwindling terrapin numbers. _ 1995-2005 Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd (Co No 10894-D) Marguerite WhildenThe Terrapin InstituteP. O. Box 51Edgewater, MD 21037Voice 410 370 9171FAX 410 757 9268www.terrapininstitute.org “It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change.” Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to:http://groups.yahoo.com/group/diamondbackterrapins/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:diamondbackterrapins-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.

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