Private Story
Turtle Protectors: From Cherry Blossoms to Hatchling Hill
Summary
Getting from nest to pond can be a struggle for hatchlings, especially when the way is blocked by infrastructure and pedestrians. These Indigenous-guided volunteers work to make the journey safer
What is less well known about the hilly grove is that it is also a hot spot for turtles. Cherry blossom season coincides with midland painted turtle hatchling season, inadvertently creating a battleground between selfie-taking crowds and the tiny reptiles. From late May to July, turtle mothers will lay their eggs on land, burying them on sandy or gravel slopes to protect them from potential predators and flooding.
Depending on the weather, turtles take 60 to 90 days to hatch, typically emerging in mid-August. Midland painted turtle babies spend the winter in their nest after hatching from their eggs, emerging only the following late April or May.
Carolynne Crawley, who has Mi’kmaw, Black and Irish ancestry and belongs to the Turtle Clan, is co-founder of Turtle Protectors, the Indigenous-guided stewardship program she started only one year ago that aims to protect at-risk turtles who nest in High Park. She first felt compelled to protect the turtles when she came across a giant nesting snapping turtle during one of her walks in the park, and was awed by the magic of the moment.
Through her Turtle Protectors work, Crawley aims to not only protect the vulnerable animals in high-traffic High Park, but also shift the fundamental relationship between humans and “animal relatives” toward greater reciprocity. She hopes that according more respect to the Indigenous approach to land stewardship will be a step in reconciliation.
“We’re all interconnected, we’re all interdependent upon each other, for many generations. We have to not only think of the future of humans but the future of all beings,” Crawley says.
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