Guide to helping freshwater turtles

Turtles are found statewide and people often find them wondering if they need help. Learn about the different ways that humans interact with turtles and what to do if you are in that scenario.

Human-turtle interactions happen often in Massachusetts, whether it be while exploring the outdoors, driving along a road, or even in your backyard. Majority of turtle species found in MA are protected under the Massachusetts Endangered Species Act (MESA). Continue reading to learn about if and when it is a good idea to help a turtle and how to do so.

Why are turtles in trouble?

Adult turtles live a long time! Some can live longer than 100 years. However, because turtle eggs and juvenile turtles have so many predators and other survival difficulties, only a small percentage of turtles even reach adulthood. Survival is critical for the adult turtles that were able to overcome the many obstacles of their youth. In order to maintain a healthy population, turtles must live for many years and reproduce many times to replace themselves and their populations. Losing any adult turtles, particularly adult females, can very quickly result in the local extinction of a population.

Most turtles need many types of habitats to fulfill all their survival needs. For example, Blanding's turtles typically:

• overwinter in permanent wetlands,
• feed in upland vernal pools,
• nest in open gravelly upland areas, and
• move among marshes, shrub swamps and other wetland types throughout the summer.

Below are some of the most common ways the public interacts with turtles.

Report what you see

Reporting turtle sightings is the best thing you can do for any turtle. For state-listed species, please report to the Heritage Hub. For all other species, share your observation on iNaturalist. If you are unsure of what to do, please call MassWildlife headquarters at [phone].

Snapping turtles

When you stumble upon a snapping turtle, the best thing to do is to leave it alone! Typically, they will move away from an area within a few hours. You may be in an area where they had previously been nesting. Many turtles exhibit nest site fidelity where they return to the same location several years in a row. If you must move a snapping turtle, use a broom to coax it into a plastic tub or box. This is the best method because snapping turtles are fast and have very powerful jaws that can inflict a bad bite. A snapping turtle can reach your hands if you lift it by the sides of its shell, but they cannot reach your hand directly under the shell, or at the bridge of the shell. Do not lift them only by the tail; doing so can injure their spine.

Turtles in the road

Look for turtles on roads, especially from mid-May to early July.

If it is unsafe for you to pull off a road or dodge traffic, do not risk yourself or other's safety for the turtle. If you do have a safe opportunity to help move a turtle, move it in the direction it is already headed, off the edge of the road. Often times it is trying to get to the habitats and resources it needs. Avoid taking turtles home or moving them anywhere farther away, even if you think it might be a "better" location.

Turtles move on roads, in yards, and across landscapes to get to the resources they need, including nesting areas. Turtles have strong homing instincts. If you move a turtle, it will most likely try to return home, where it will most likely cross multiple more roads. The place you find them is the habitat they know most intimately, because they have grown up in the surrounding area. Moving turtles also increases the risk of spreading disease.

Injured turtles

Turtles that have been hit by a car or other piece of machinery may appear to not be worth saving. But turtles are very resilient! Whether the injury is minor or major, it is best to contact a local wildlife rehabilitator, or a veterinarian or wildlife clinic. Depending on the severity, they can help you with next steps to helping the turtle.

Always call first before moving the turtle, to make sure the rehabilitator can treat turtles. Not all veterinarians or wildlife rehabilitators are able to do so. To find a licensed wildlife rehabilitator near you, please visit find a wildlife rehabilitator. This list is not complete. Any provider who would like to be added to the list can contact Mike Jones at [phone].

Collection of wild turtles

A majority of turtle species in Massachusetts are protected, meaning they cannot be captured or kept. All other turtles require a permit to possess, alive or dead, including shells.

If you are already in possession of a wild turtle, and it has been with any other turtles, or if it has been in captivity for a long time, please avoid releasing it. It could transmit a disease to other wild turtles. In these cases, you can contact MassWildlife Field Headquarters at [phone].

If it has not been with other turtles, or been in captivity for long, please return it to the wild in the same location where it was found, so it can find food, shelter, and mates.

You can purchase turtles that are not state-listed from pet stores, but you can never release them into the wild. They may carry and transmit diseases to our native wild turtles (e.g. mycoplasma, Ranavirus). 

Turtle nesting

Nesting season is from late May to early July, peaking in early June. Females nest in fields, residential yards, or areas where the nest will get sunlight throughout the day to incubate the eggs. They prefer patches of bare sandy soil when available. If you find a nesting female, the best thing to do is to keep people and animals away from the area until she has finished nesting, which can take several hours. Avoid moving female turtles or any turtles to a "better" location.

Hatchlings emerge from the nest cavity from late August through early October. However, some (especially eastern painted turtles) may overwinter in the nest cavity and emerge in early spring. If you find a hatchling box turtle, you should take it to the nearest forest edge and release it near cover material, such as a downed tree branch or pile of leaves.

For hatchlings of all other species you should take them to the nearest vegetated area (forest edge, wetland edge). It is best to release them by cover material, like a pile of leaves. If the hatchling is found in the upland, move it to safety but remember that pond edges support many predators (bullfrogs, water snakes, herons, and raccoons) and studies have shown that several species of hatching turtle spend several weeks on land before moving to the water. If hatchlings are moved out of harm's way, they should never be moved more than 50 yards.