Turtles
  • Eastern painted turtle
    © Andre Hamel
  • Common snapping turtle
    © Anais Boutin
  • Common map turtle
    © Larry Lafleur
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Problem : Mille Îles River turtles face many threats: their egg-laying sites are disappearing, shorelines are being filled, people are catching them illegally, their eggs are increasingly being lost to wild animals and pets, and cars and motor boats are taking a toll.
Creating a turtle observation network along the Mille Îles River. Thanks to reports by local residents every year, the park is tracking turtle populations, protecting nests and important habitats, and identifying egg-laying sites. © Anais Boutin
Rehabilitating injured native turtles. In partnership with local veterinarians, the park’s biologists care for, rehabilitate and release injured turtles. © Francis Allaire
Monitoring turtle nests. The park is tracking turtles nesting success, mainly by counting the number of eggs that hatch, both in the wild and at nesting sites maintained by the organization. © Anais Boutin
Awareness and education. The park has various initiatives to share the message about protecting turtles. It produces fact sheets and runs information booths. It also reminds pet stores not to catch native turtles or release exotic ones into the wild. © Éco-Nature
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Do you like turtles? Remember that it’s prohibited to catch Quebec turtles or keep them as pets. You can help by reporting injured turtles or live eggs to park authorities and by not releasing a pet store turtle into the wild.