There has been some discussion over the possibility of diamondback terrapins living in the Shark River. Shark River is located in Monmouth County, NJ; it is a relatively small and shallow estuarine basin with no data to support the presence of terrapins. This summer (July 2011), the Marine Academy of Technology & Environmental Science (MATES), Drexel University, and interns with Monmouth University's Urban Coast Institute will pilot a mark and recapture study to hopefully answer this question. We will be working the weeks of July 4, July 18, and July 25 to capture diamondback terrapins.
The first week of trapping was on the south branch of the Shark River basin. The tidal range is great with traps sitting well, then beached during low tide. We caught a large snapping turtle (pictured) close to Brighton Road on July 7. We will resume trapping on July 18 in the north where there is more promising terrapin habitat than in the southern branch.
The second trapping session produced no terrapins during week one (July 17), but we are now concentrating efforts in Shark River Hills off S. Riverside and East End Avenues. After a second full week of trapping, we failed to capture any terrapins in Musquash Cove. Here is what we can report for this project:
1. Not a single terrapin was spotted basking anywhere along the banks of the masrhes
2. Not a single sign of nesting or even predation on nests was observed
3. Not a single terrapin was spotted in the water (which is not the case at Island Beach where we see them frequently)
4. Although trappins produced a snapping turtle, no terrapins were captured using baited hoop traps (in 360 hours of trapping). Compared to Island Beach with 30 terrapins caught in 360 hours).
Therefore, we cannot say "terrapins are not in the Shark River:, however, if terrapins are present, it would be a small population to say the least. Thanks to the Monmouth University students who were dedicated and did an outstanding job this summer!
No comments:
Post a Comment