Where Do Baby Turtles Come From?

If you opened this post thinking that I am about to tell a story of a young turtle asking it's parents about where baby turtles come from, you were purposely mislead. Gotcha! But don't go! I will address baby turtles, along with frogs, salamanders and even snakes! This post actually is more about the habitats of many of these creatures: wetlands. Well actually it's not just about wetlands, its more about the areas surrounding wetlands known as upland habitat.
Since 1979, the state of Michigan has recognized that wetlands needed protection. The Geomare-Anderson Wetlands Protection Act was instituted due to the realization that wetlands often connect to larger bodies of water, can flow from county to county, provide wildlife habitat and more. Good job Michigan!
Wow.
Great, the wetlands have been protected for forty years, all the salamanders, turtles, frogs and snakes are safe; we can all rest easy. Phew!
Eh.... Not quite.
In terms of wildlife protection, this law recognized that wetlands provide breeding grounds for many a species which is obviously important for the continued success of a species. But what this law, and I believe other wetland laws, doesn't cover is the upland habitat found adjacent to the wetlands. This matters, because although, wetlands do provide breeding grounds for many creatures, most of them also spend life stages, life events, or seasons in these surrounding upland habitats.
For almost all turtles native to Michigan, breeding takes place in water. However, the eggs, which are immediately abandoned after laying, are not laid in the water or in a nest above the water. Many of the turtles will travel several hundred feet from the water to deposit their eggs; which I have seen first hand. It was early June of this past year when I was walking through a prairie in Southeast Michigan. I hadn't gone out looking for anything in particular that evening but stumbled across a female Painted Turtle laying eggs into the nest it dug out on the side of the trail. Later I would look up how far this point was from the nearest body of water; it was approximately 500 ft. from the creek that runs near by.
Think 500 ft. is a trek? The Common Snapping Turtle and the Blanding's Turtle (species of special concern in Michigan) can go farther; they have been known to go more than a half mile away from the body of water they came from to lay their eggs (Harding and Mifsud 178, 212 ). While this may seem crazy to travel so far from water to deposit their eggs, this is to keep the eggs incubated and to avoid eggs being flooded out by potentially rising water levels. Usually the best site is chosen based on the texture of the soil (a well draining soil being best) and the sunniness (helps keep those eggs warm). This is where baby turtles come from. They do not hatch next to the water and have an easy trip to the water, often they hatch nowhere near the water and have to traverse logs, large rocks and holes, and man-made structures before they get to their wetlands.

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Painted Turtle seen in June laying eggs along a path in a prairie, approximately 500 ft. from the nearest body of water

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Hatchling Painted Turtle found upside down on a sidewalk

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Female Snapping Turtle a few hundred feet from a nearby creek, about to lay eggs in a man-made dune habitat

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Hatchling baby Snapping Turtle found in a parking lot on its way to a pond

Most salamanders, native to Michigan, do a bit of the opposite of turtles; they mate and lay eggs in the wetlands, but spend the rest of their lives in more upland habitats. The Spotted Salamander, for example, has been known to travel to a wetland that is up to half a mile away from where it overwinters (Harding and Mifsud 55). Once most salamanders are done doing their business in the wetlands they head back upland to live out the rest of their season. The upland that many salamanders prefer is still woodlands as salamanders thrive in moist and humid cover. Here they'll hide under logs, leaves and rocks while hunting for small insects, worms and some will even consume smaller salamanders. So yes, while wetlands are critical to the breeding and larval stages of salamanders, the rest of their lives are really spent outside of the water in the surrounding woodlands.

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Red-backed Salamander (in Lead Phase) found under a log in a moist woodland

Some frogs are in the same boat as salamanders. For instance, despite Spring Peepers being a common frog species, seeming to find homes in the smallest pockets of woods, they too need those upland habitats to survive (Harding and Mifsud 137). Eastern and Cope's Gray Tree frogs, while not necessarily needing upland habitats, are known to hang out in shrubs adjacent to ponds and also on tree branches that hang over ponds (Harding and Mifsud 142). When clearing occurs up to wetland edges, it's possible these species could suffer as well.

Assumed to be Gray Tree Frog found on a tree directly next to pond

While some snakes of Michigan may make seasonal movements from moister sites to drier sites, I'm going to cover just one that I think deserves the most attention: the Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake. This is the ONLY venomous snake in the state of Michigan and is protected as a "special concern" species in the state. These secretive snakes overwinter in wetlands in crayfish or small mammal burrows, where their bodies may be partially submerged in water. Once temps start to heat up, they will head out of their low, wetland areas to, you got it, drier, upland habitat. Here they'll hang out for the warm season, preying upon voles, mice, and other small mammals. This is where protection of upland habitat is important. This seasonal movement is essential to the life of this snake, it's ingrained in it's behavior. Not only does the "swamp rattler" face the threat of habitat destruction, but it also faces unnecessary persecution due to its venomous nature.

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Unfortunately, the best Massasauga photograph I have. Found in a small upland prairie.

Sometimes a species may have access to both the wetland and the upland that it requires but the travel between these habitats is the real danger. Road mortality can be a significant cause of death for many of the above creatures. Consider a female snapping turtle who has mated and is on her way to a nesting spot. In her way lies a road that she must safely get across to lay. Then, after nesting, she must cross that road again to get back to where she came from. That is two opportunities for a rather slow moving creature to be struck by a vehicle. Then, the hatchlings likely also need to cross that road to get to get to proper habitat. Like the hatchling turtles, many other creatures are small and blend in well with the pavement they are attempting to cross; this makes it tricky when driving to look out for them. Fortunately some municipalities have allowed temporary road closures during the breeding season of some creatures, like salamanders. It's this kind of thinking that can help protect these species.

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Developments frequently sit near bodies of water, cutting off or destroying significant portions of upland habitat

A quick Google search of "laws protecting upland habitats" yields little. There are some sites pertaining to the state of Florida and the barriers small municipalities face in trying to protect upland habitat for the Gopher Tortoise but most seem to discuss the very issue I'm discussing here.

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This creek (right side of photo, likely full of invasive plants) has residential development directly uphill from it

While defining certain habitats and parceling them out may allow for easier study and a good way to highlight important parts of it for protection, it becomes dangerous when we do not look at the big picture. This is what has gotten nature in trouble in the past; by not recognizing a whole system we risk destroying it when we only protect part of it. The future of these species is not tied only to their respective wetlands, those upland habitats prove to be just as critical.

Blanding's Turtle

Note:

This post intended only to cover the physical destruction facing upland habitat. Chemicals used in pest control and agriculture are chemical issues not covered here.

Citations:

Harding, James H., Mifsud, David A. Amphibians and Reptiles of the Great Lakes Region. Revised Edition. University of Michigan Press. 2017. pp. 55, 137, 142, 178, 212,