Spotted turtles (clemmys guttata) have declined across their range and are of conservation concern throughout the united states and canada

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) awarded a $567,476 Project Grant under the State Wildlife Grants (CFDA 15.634) program to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (Georgia DNR). This 3-year grant, with a period of performance from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2026, will support conservation efforts for the spotted turtle, a species of greatest conservation need across the Southeastern U.S.

Through this funding, the Georgia DNR will collaborate with partners across 6 states to: 1) identify priority habitats and improve habitat quality and quantity for spotted turtles, 2) address data gaps in the species' distribution, 3) establish long-term demographic assessment sites, 4) refine survey protocols, 5) provide technical assistance to landowners for habitat restoration, and 6) combat illegal take of spotted turtles and other freshwater turtle species. The project will update the existing conservation plan for the spotted turtle in the Eastern U.S. to guide state-level actions and inform the potential federal listing decision under the Endangered Species Act.

They have been identified as species of greatest conservation need (sgcn) in all 21 states where they occur, are considered endangered by the iucn, and are being considered for federal listing under the endangered species act (ESA), as amended. In response to these broad appraisals, a status assessment and conservation plan were recently developed for the spotted turtle in the eastern united states. We propose to leverage the findings of this assessment and implement elements of the conservation plan by undertaking the following projects with the overall goal of increasing population size and supporting healthy metapopulations of spotted turtles and associated sgcn in the southeastern U.S., from florida to west virginia. To do this, we will seek to identify priority wetland and terrestrial habitats for spotted turtles in the southeastern U.S., improve their habitat quality and quantity, and improve awareness of and protection from illegal trade. We will address data gaps in southeastern U.S. Spotted turtle distribution through continued inter-state collaboration and research (objective 1), develop long-term demographic assessment sites to evaluate population viability in six states (objective 2), refine the standard sampling protocol to address detection challenges (objective 3), provide technical assistance to landowner partners and restore critical habitats (objectives 4 5), hold an interagency workshop to combat illegal take of spotted turtles and other related freshwater turtle sgcn (objective 6), update and refine the conservation plan with data collected in this project (objective 7). We anticipate that the results and analyses from this project and the updated conservation plan will provide valuable information for the states as they address the listing decision of the USFWS and enable them, the USFWS, and partners to improve populations across the eastern U.S.