Turtle Taxis are folks who help turtles cross roads. Click on the link below for a print-friendly page and carry a copy on your travels as a reminder to how to lift turtles and carry them to safety.

 
Be Safe  DO NOT endanger yourself. Always be aware of traffic and do not step in front of moving vehicles.

 
Lifting Turtles  The largest snappers can be lifted without anyone being hurt. Approach them from behind. Firmly but gently use both hands to grasp turtles between their front and rear legs as shown in the pictures to the right. The turtle’s head should face away from you. Keep the turtle low to the ground. He might kick, stretch his neck up and sideways, and snap. Keep behind and don’t lean over him so his mouth can’t reach you. Never lift turtles by the tail!—this can cause spinal injuries which leave them paralyzed.

 
Where to Take Turtles?  Take the turtle in the direction he/she is heading, and leave him/her safely 10 to 12 feet away from the road edge.

 
Helping Injured Turtles  Collect any broken shell pieces and keep them as whole as possible. Gently put the turtle in a dark container that allows air inside. Call a wildlife rehabilitator. Find a rehabber by contacting a state fish & game department, or visit “How to Locate a Wildlife Rehabilitator” online at http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/contact.htm to find a rehabber near you. Learn more about helping turtles by visiting http://www.tamiasoutside.com/turtletaxi/ for detailed information.

 
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Box turtles are interesting creatures, and I would love to get to know then personally, but they don’t live in this part of the world. They are common in the southeast, however, and like turtles everywhere they sometimes walk into danger as they cross roads to go about their business. Sometimes an angel comes by to save them. In this case, the good samaritan was Bob Angel, who was taking a walk himself along Vesuvius Furnace Road in eastern North Carolina. Here’s what Bob has to say:

 
Not ten minutes down the road I espied this little fellow just beginning his trip across the blacktop. Normally I wouldn’t think of disturbing a wild creature. But his, or her, chances of making it across the road without being hit by a car were very bad. So, I picked him/her up and placed him/her on the other side of the road, in the direction in which s/he had been heading.

 
Funny thing is, the turtle was still there when I walked back up the road fifteen minutes later. All hunkered down in the shell.

Photos reprinted with kind permission from Bob Angel

 
Thanks, Bob, for being a turtle taxi! The box turtle was probably getting his or her bearings before heading out again. Box turtles are largely terrestrial, living in fields, woods, and around river bottoms. They won’t turn down a chance to soak in the water, though, and are capable of swimming. Their high domed carapace&mdsh;the upper shell—is characteristic and beautifully patterned, while their plastron—the bottom shell—tells the box turtles gender. Males have a concave plastron, while females have a convex plastron. When alarmed, box turtles retract their legs and heads into their protective shells, but unlike many other species of turtle, they can tightly clamp the carapace and plastron together to form a tight seal so no fleshy parts are left vulnerable. But this invulnerability doesn’t extend to fending off tons of metal, glass, and rubber hurtling down the road. That’s why it’s always heartening when someone comes along and compassionately and safely helps a turtle cross the road.

 
Have you saved a turtle from being hit by cars? Do you have a story or pictures to share? Just send us an email and we’ll publish your comments and turtle pictures in our “Turtle Portrait Gallery.”

 
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It’s already turtle season in many parts of the country, and it will soon be warm enough for turtles to emerge here in the northern Adirondacks of New York. Cyclists are in a prime position to see turtles crossing roads. Unfortunately, not all turtles make it through the gauntlet of motorized traffic. Give them a hand crossing the road, but be safe doing it. Learn how by reading “Help Turtles Cross Roads.”

 
Cyclists aren’t the only folks to discover turtles in danger. Anyone with a sharp eye can rescue them by becoming a turtle taxi. Just ask Bob Angel, who returned to his suburban South Carolina home one recent afternoon to find a group of kind-hearted neighbors trying to figure out how to encourage a snapping turtle out of the street. Someone had the idea of using a shovel to lift the snapper and set him or her on the grass well off the road. As an avid photographer, Bob had his camera at hand and took a portrait of the rescued snapper for the Outside Up North “Turtle Portrait Gallery.”

Photo reprinted with kind permission from Bob Angel

 
Have you saved a turtle from being hit by cars? Do you have a story or pictures to share? Just send us an email and we’ll publish your comments and turtle pictures in our “Turtle Portrait Gallery.”

 
Send a Comment