Introducing the Box Turtle Team Leaders of 2026!! Turtle season is officially back, and we could not be more excited! Over the next few months, we’ll be spending our days trekking through forests, prairies, wetlands, and field sites across Illinois in search of eastern (and occasionally ornate) [...]
Hey, everyone! It's been a super busy past couple of weeks, as we've been in the field quite a bit, tracking our own ornate box turtles and helping out with the last week of Eastern Box Turtle Team! Just wanted to pop in and give some updates on what we've been up to. Last week [...]
Hello everybody! This week we had our second-to-last week, and we did some more trapping to wrap up our numbers for the summer. As researchers, we aim to have an amount of captures every year to accurately assess our turtle populations and develop reliable statistical analyses. Fortunately, this year has been a very fruitful one [...]
The compound urushiol is found in poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac, which causes a contact allergic dermatitis in the majority of the population. We’ve both suffered from some pretty gnarly poison ivy this summer, so we are here to provide our favorite tips and tricks to surviving poison ivy when working outside! First [...]
This especially nippy snapper from DuPage County tugged himself into the newest "Worst Turtle of the Week" position. After his workup, he not only did not want to give us our rope back, but also snapped at any blue glove in sight. He was also recaptured the following day, and I personally wrestled him for [...]
This baby danger nugget (Common Snapping Turtle) from DuPage County was awarded the "Best Turtle of the Week" position. So cute, so pudgy, so polite, and not yet figured out that it is a snapper that should bite. He weighed in at about 65 grams, which is officially my tiniest patient so far.
This stubborn Blanding's boy from DuPage County swiped the position of 'Worst Turtle of the Week' by completely being uncooperative during blood draws, swabbing, and his physical exam. His long nails destroyed more than four pairs of glove. My palm will not forgive him for the abuse.
I present this adorable Blanding's juvenile from DuPage County as the 'Best Turtle of the Week.' They were fantastic for their workup and cheesed for our shellfie. 10/10 would examine again <3
What does a week of aquatic turtle work look like for an ornate box turtle gal? Pretty much just a lot of water... Marg and Maddie This past week, one of our ornate team members, Maddie, joined Lake County veterinary students and biologists and competed in this year’s Blanding’s Bowl! Blanding’s Bowl is [...]
Another successful Blanding’s Bowl! We had an exciting first week of July with our Blanding’s Bowl Competition, where the WEL team, Lake County, and others battled for the Championship title on the largest turtle trapping week of the summer. Folks from the WEL vet team, Lake County, Cook County, Eastern Box Turtle Team, Ornate [...]
