Sweeping the Land of Ooze — 16 November 2000
This morning’s low tide offered a chance to sweep the
Land of Ooze for potentially lethal debris. As we slogged through the
Indian Neck creeks, we found two dead five-year-old females within a few feet of
each other south of Fox Island.
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One of these “twins” measured 8.7 cm,
the second 8.65 cm carapace length. |
Three more dead terrapins were discovered in marsh channels north of Field
Point, bringing the total to 20 dead terrapins in the Fox Island Wildlife
Management Area the last two weeks. |
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One, a six-year-old male of 11.85 cm length, had last been
observed on 30 September swimming through Blackfish Creek. He had
apparently experienced such a good season that the researcher noted,
“Chunky . . . hardly fits into shell with summer fat.” |
Another, a 10-year-old female of 17.9 cm, was last seen on 3 June
as she, too, swam through Blackfish Creek in seemingly perfect condition.
A little way further upstream, the main discharge channel on Field Point
was blocked by netting, seining the tidal ebb and flow from the entire marsh
area south of Wise Hill. While this blockage appeared the most serious
threat, we also pulled scattered pieces of debris from throughout the Fox Island
Wildlife Management Area marsh system. Still, the amount of material found
this year falls far short of the last spring’s haul. Our hope is that we
are gradually recovering this habitat from years of neglect and as we persevere,
the terrapin death total in the marsh will decline as well.
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