Date of Award
2006
Degree Name
Biological Sciences
College
College of Science
Type of Degree
M.S.
Document Type
Thesis
First Advisor
Thomas K. Pauley
Second Advisor
Dan K. Evans
Third Advisor
Charles Somerville
Abstract
An ecological study was conducted from 19 March 2001 to 2 April 2003 on a population of Spotted Turtles (Clemmys guttata) and Wood Turtles (Glyptemys insculpta) in West Virginia. Live-trapping, mark-recapture, radio telemetry and temperature data logging techniques were used to gather information on morphometrics, capture success, movements, home range, behavior, and thermal regime during activity and over-wintering seasons. Twenty-one Spotted Turtles were captured 260 times. Population structure was 42.9% juvenile, 38.1% male, and 19.0% female. Mean home range was 0.52 ha. Fifty Wood Turtles were captured 230 times. Juveniles were 36%, and males and females were 32% each. Mean Wood Turtle home range was 4.48 ha. Turtle and environmental temperatures were analyzed. Temperature data loggers revealed that Spotted and Wood Turtle hibernacula were stable throughout winter and stayed above freezing. Lowest temperatures experienced were 0.0°C by Spotted Turtles and -4.5°C by Wood Turtles. Injuries, abnormalities, and ectoparasites were noted.
Subject(s)
Clemmys guttata - Ecology - West Virginia.
Wood turtle - Ecology - West Virginia.
Recommended Citation
Breisch, Ariana N., "The Natural History and Thermal Ecology of a Population of Spotted Turtles (Clemmys Guttata) and Wood Turtles (Glyptemys Insculpta) in West Virginia" (2006). Theses, Dissertations and Capstones. 509.
https://mds.marshall.edu/etd/509
