Together, the United States and Mexico support one-third of the freshwater turtle species on Earth. Over 137 terminal taxa—species, subspecies, and evolution-significant lineages—occur in diverse habitats across the continent.

Most species of North American turtles are of conservation concern, threatened by a range of factors including forest and wetland fragmentation, pathogens, and collection of adult turtles for pet markets. In order for viable, functional populations to persist, it is necessary to incorporate the best available science into cooperative conservation planning.

American Turtle Observatory is a network of scientists, researchers, agencies, communities, and landowners responding to conservation opportunities in focal landscapes and developing conservation strategies for widespread species of concern and restricted-range species. On Wednesday, May 11 at 7 pm, Mike Jones and Liz Willey will discuss their work on turtles. The program will be held at the Millers River Environmental Center, 100 Main Street in Athol.

Dr. Willey serves on the faculty in the Environmental Studies Department at Antioch University New England in Keene, New Hampshire. Dr. Jones is a biologist in the Department of Environmental Conservation at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst and is the lead author and co-editor (with Liz Willey) of Eastern Alpine Guide: Natural History and Conservation of Mountain Tundra East of the Rockies, and lead author of Status and Conservation of the Wood Turtle in the Northeastern United States.  Image by Mike Jones.

Free and open to the public.  For directions visit www.atholbirdclub.org.