Dennis Chase, a retired biologist in Fayette County, is greatly concerned about the future of the Eastern box turtle, one of Georgia’s most common terrestrial turtles that often nests in our yards.
Box turtle populations have been declining for several reasons — habitat loss, roadkill and collection for the pet trade.
Now, Chase has documented another serious threat — armadillos, a nonnative species rapidly spreading across Georgia. The animals, according to Chase, dig up turtle nests and eat the eggs at a voracious rate.
Since 2016, Chase and a cadre of volunteers have been keeping records of box turtle nesting in a 300-acre nature preserve owned by Fayetteville. Their observations are alarming: Between 2016-2023, nearly half of known box turtle nests on the preserve have been destroyed by armadillos.
“This has occurred despite hundreds of hours of effort by volunteers to save turtle nests,” said Chase.
When Fayetteville acquired the preserve in 2008, it asked Chase, a retired wildlife biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, to conduct field evaluations of the property. “I encountered large numbers of Eastern box turtles at the time,” Chase said.
Then, around 2013, he began noticing a “large number” of destroyed nests. From animal tracks around the nests and other evidence, he concluded that the culprits were armadillos. Armadillos, he knew, were rapidly spreading unchecked in the area.
To save as many turtle nests as possible, Chase and fellow volunteers, with guidance from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, began systematic searches for nests on the preserve. Now, if they find an intact nest, they place a special wire mesh cage over it to protect the eggs until they hatch. When hatchlings emerge, they are collected and taken to “release points” and allowed to venture into the wild.
Still, Chase said, the outlook is not good for box turtles and other creatures that lay eggs in or on the ground. “With no way to control the armadillo population, the damage will only get worse,” he said.
IN THE SKY: From David Dundee, Tellus Science Museum astronomer: The moon will be first quarter on Thursday. Mercury (very low) and Venus (low) are in the west just after sunset. Mars is in the southwest at dusk. Jupiter and Saturn are in the east around midnight.
Charles Seabrook can be reached at charles.seabrook@yahoo.com.
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