Download or read book Reproductive Biology of Alligator Snapping Turtles written by Denise Michele Thompson and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Successful production of offspring (and ultimately grand-offspring) defines organisms' fitness. Therefore, I investigated three critical aspects of reproduction in the alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii), a model organism that is of great conservation interest. Specifically, I studied: (1) nesting behavior and (2) maternal reproductive investment patterns in a captive alligator snapping turtle population housed outdoors under semi-natural conditions, and (3) nest predation patterns in a reintroduced population. Both sites were located in the species' geographic range in southern Oklahoma. Females averaged 25 terrestrial forays prior to successfully nesting and average nesting duration was 185 minutes. Nesting activity positively correlated with increasing temperature, but did not correspond with rainfall. Larger females tended to lay larger eggs but the number of eggs per clutch was not related to female size. Instead, females primarily increased fecundity by allocating extra resources to producing more eggs rather than larger eggs. Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are the most important nest predator in the population studied, and I investigated the role of soil disturbance and turtle olfactory stimuli in raccoon responses to artificially constructed alligator snapping turtle nests. Raccoons primarily used soil disturbance cues to detect artificial nests; however, after being detected nests with soil disturbance were more likely to survive an encounter with a raccoon than a nest that lacked visual stimuli. The conspicuous nesting strategy employed by M. temminckii is discussed as a potential evolutionarily adaptive strategy to disguise the exact location of the clutch from predators.
Download or read book Reproductive Biology and Conservation Genetics of the Alligator Snapping Turtle macrochelys Temminckii written by Amber R. Teare and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 91 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Author's abstract: The alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) is a highly aquatic turtle only found in Gulf of Mexico drainages. The biology of this species remains relatively unknown, despite years of harvest and use as a zoological attraction. The purposes of this study were to (1) determine gender size classes and assess sexual size dimorphism, (2) delineate the reproductive cycle of M. temminckii, particularly their sex steroid seasonality, and (3) evaluate possible genetic divergence between M. temminckii found in southwest Georgia and northern Florida. Alligator snapping turtles exhibit pronounced sexual size dimorphism as adults. However, determining sex in smaller individuals is difficult. The purpose of this study was to assess gender size classes and sexual dimorphism in Macrochelys temminckii. Alligator snapping turtles in southwest Georgia were trapped from March 2008 to April 2010. Captured turtles were bled, sexed based on size and ultrasound, and measured for multiple characteristics. For all measurements, adult males were larger than females. The relationships between carapace length, plastron-to-vent length, and testosterone levels were used to determine gender of smaller individuals. To ensure accurate sexual assignment when studying M. temminckii, data from multiple methods (morphological measurements, ultrasonography, testosterone levels, and, laparoscopy) should be used. To delineate the reproductive cycle of M. temminckii, blood samples were taken from captured individuals, and plasma testosterone and estradiol were measured using enzyme immunoassay. Males exhibited seasonal changes in testosterone levels, with maximum levels occurring in October. Mating behavior was elucidated from the appearance of wounds on males that only occurred in April. Females displayed seasonality in testosterone and estradiol levels, with relative peaks occurring in March and April (mating and ovulation) and September and October (follicular development). Genetic structure between M. temminckii populations separated by a dam and under different hunting pressures was assessed using microsatellite loci. Average number of alleles per locus and number of unique alleles was higher for the Florida population. Genetic structure was detected between the populations (FST = 0.043, p = 0.001). The rapid development of structuring between Florida and Georgia M. temminckii warrants further investigation into the effects of fragmentation and overexploitation on this species.
Download or read book The Alligator Snapping Turtle written by Peter Charles Howard Pritchard and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The alligator snapping turtle is one of the most celebrated of the world's turtles. Yet, despite its unquestionable familiarity among even the most dilettante turtle enthusiasts and hobbyist, it remains a rather poorly-known species. This text takes a look at the turtle.
Download or read book Alligator Snapping Turtle written by Charlotte Samuel and published by . This book was released on 2020-06-24 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite their ubiquity in some areas of the natural world, snapping turtles are somewhat rare in captive collections. This is not surprising, given that snapping turtles grow to be quite large and their dispositions often range from irritable to overtly hostile; a momentary lapse in concentration can have disastrous consequences. However, while snapping turtles are wholly inappropriate for beginning turtle keepers and those without the means to provide spacious accommodations, experienced turtle keepers often find that these incredible animals make rewarding pets, and are well worth the resources they require. As when caring for any animal as a pet, keepers must learn as much as possible about the biology, behavior and ecology of the species, in order to provide them the highest quality of life possible
Download or read book Nesting Ecology in Reintroduced Alligator Snapping Turtles Macrochelys Temminckii written by Jessica Leigh Miller and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 120 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii) is a large freshwater species that has experienced population declines throughout much of its range. In an effort to reestablish an extirpated population in southern Oklahoma, adult M. temminckii were released at Tishomingo National Wildlife Refuge in 2007. I investigated several aspects of M. temminckii reproductive biology within this reintroduced population, including nest-site selection, reproductive and nest predation rates, and patterns of temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD) in natural nests. Water depth two meters from the shoreline and percentage ground cover were important factors in nest-site selection. The nest predation rate was 76% when efforts were made to protect nests and the average clutch size in intact nests was 22.4 eggs. The overall sex ratio in 2010 recruits was strongly female-biased (91.8% female) and a strongly skewed population sex ratio may become a serious threat to this reintroduced population if this trend continues. I also developed a technique to reliably estimate clutch size from predated M. temminckii shell fragments which will improve estimates of mean clutch size (and therefore annual fecundity) for the population. The persistence of several adult M. temminckii and evidence of successful reproduction and recruitment are positive signs, but post-release monitoring will need to continue for several more years in order for this reintroduction to be considered a success.
Download or read book Nesting Ecology of the Alligator Snapping Turtle Macroclemys Temminckii Along the Lower Apalachicola River Florida written by Michael Allyn Ewert and published by . This book was released on 1994 with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Aligator Snapping Turtle As Pet written by Theo Jayden and published by . This book was released on 2019-12-15 with total page 28 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Like different reptiles, aligator snapping turtles are unfeeling. As it were, they are helpless before their condition for endurance. In the southeastern United States, where they start, they're warmed by the bright atmosphere. Since grown-up snappers are too huge to be in any way kept inside, they should be situated in a nursery (or other outside fenced in area) with subtropical conditions.
Download or read book The Biology and Status of the Alligator Snapping Turtle Macroclemys Temmincki with Research and Management Recommendations written by Peter Charles Howard Pritchard and published by . This book was released on 1982 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Habitat Use and Movements of Alligator Snapping Turtle Macrochelys Temminckii Hatchlings written by Amity Ann Bass and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 106 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The objective of this study was to gather data concerning home range, movements, and habitat use of hatchling Alligator Snapping Turtles ... in order to better manage for this species. Nineteen hatchlings were tracked at Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge during 2006. Ten animals were successfully tracked during the spring and nine during the fall. Hatchlings that were incubated in the laboratory or naturally on the railroad causeway were heavier and had longer carapace lengths than those naturally incubated along the forest-old field edge of the peninsula (p
Download or read book Population Structure and Reproduction of Alligator Snapping Turtles Macrochelys i e Macroclemys Temminckii at Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge written by Lori Brianne Woosley and published by . This book was released on 2005 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Alligator Snapping Turtle written by Dr Anita Andrew and published by . This book was released on 2020-09-13 with total page 26 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Like different reptiles, aligator snapping turtles are unfeeling. As it were, they are helpless before their condition for endurance. In the southeastern United States, where they start, they're warmed by the bright atmosphere. Since grown-up snappers are too huge to be in any way kept inside, they should be situated in a nursery (or other outside fenced in area) with subtropical conditions.
Download or read book The Ecology of the Alligator Snapping Turtle Macrochelys Temminckii in Oklahoma written by J. Daren Riedle and published by . This book was released on 2001 with total page 242 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Biology and Conservation of Alligator Snapping Turtles Macrochelys written by and published by . This book was released on 2023 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Biology of the Snapping Turtle Chelydra Serpentina written by Anthony C. Steyermark and published by . This book was released on 2008-03-31 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume synthesizes all that is known about the common snapping turtle to provide an up-to-date and comprehensive resource on the species' evolution, physiology, behavior, and life history. Anthony C. Steyermark, Michael S. Finkler, Ronald J. Brooks, and a team of experts detail the systematics, energetics, growth patterns, sex determination, and population genetics of snapping turtles and devote special attention to the fossil record of the snapping turtle family Chelydridae.
Download or read book Reproductive Biology and Diseases of Captive Reptiles written by James Bernard Murphy and published by . This book was released on 1980 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Demographics and Habitat Selection of the Alligator Snapping Turtle Macrochelys Temminckii written by Christopher A. F. Howey and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Ecology of Hatchling Alligator Snapping Turtles Macrochelys Temminckii written by Sarah Spangler and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 132 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Little is known about the first year of life for many of the world’s freshwater turtles. This is due in part to their cryptic nature and the difficulty of locating hatchlings in the wild. The lack of information about this demographically important age group has led researchers to draw conclusions from indirect inferences about survival rates and ecological roles of hatchlings that may or may not be accurate. To begin filling in some of these gaps, I focused on the first year in an alligator snapping turtle’s life. I studied: (1) circadian and circannual patterns of activity, (2) growth rates and how they are related to activity rates, (3) habitat preferences, (4) fall movement patterns, and (5) predation patterns. My study site was within the species’ natural range in southeastern Oklahoma. Unlike adults, hatchlings followed a predominantly diurnal activity pattern for much of the year, with peak activity occurring during the mid-hours of the day. The diurnal habit of hatchlings may be a strategy to temporally partition themselves from nocturnal predators. There were no significant relationships between growth rates and activity rates during any period, potentially due to small sample size. Hatchlings were located in areas of increased cover and shallower water depths, when compared to random locations. Their movement patterns were characterized by an initial movement away from the site of release to a location with suitable habitat characteristics, and they tended to stay at these locations for extended periods. I documented depredation by fish, but not by terrestrial predators such as raccoons.
