Public input needed for new study on painted turtle nesting in Vernon

Vernon’s Swan Lake will be the location of a western painted turtle study for the next two months led by local naturalist Harold Sellers who is requesting help from the public.

The study will shed a light on the turtles’ nesting activities which aren’t fully known yet, and it’s relying on those visiting the area to submit their observations.

“We know the turtle population at Swan Lake is quite good, but we don’t know anything about their nesting activities,” Sellers said. “We don’t know if there are enough adequate nesting sites available for them.”

The western painted turtle is a threatened species in BC due to human development activities and getting crushed by traffic during spring migration. It’s the only native pond turtle left in the province and a beloved wetland critter in the Thompson-Okanagan region. 

Swan Lake is located between Highway 97 and Old Kamloops Road in Vernon, and is enclosed in a provincial wildlife management area 471.5 hectares in size that includes grasslands, marshlands and numerous wildlife species.

The female turtles nest from mid-June to mid-July.

“They use their claws to dig down into sand or gravel to lay eggs at dry, cool depths, so they’ll be spotted in open areas rather than in vegetation,” Sellers said. “The turtles lay their eggs at night so will be active in the evening, at night or in the early morning.”

The eggs are incubated for 70 to 80 days and hatch in late August or early September. Hatchlings stay in the underground nest until they emerge the following May or June.

Sellers was recently contacted by an RV and campground owner on the lake who spotted a turtle laying eggs late at night on their small beach front.

“They have concern because there are a lot of people at that location,” Sellers said. “It’s likely once the turtle lays its eggs there isn’t an issue because the eggs are buried, so people can use the beach over top without harming them.”

Sellers is part of the North Okanagan Naturalists Club that does restoration and conservation work at Swan Lake and is behind the nesting study.

Information collected from the study will be provided to the provincial government, the Okanagan Indian Band and local environmental consultant agencies. 

If you want to contribute to study, you can submit your observations of turtle nesting activity in the Swan Lake Wildlife Management Area by email to naturevernon@gmail.com.

Be sure to include the time and location of the observation and include a photograph. Don’t dig up a nest, interfere with a nesting turtle or publicize the location.

To access Swan Lake Management Area, drive north on Old Kamloops Road 2.3 kilometres from the intersection of 43 Avenue and Alexis Park Drive. Turn right at Swan Lake Regional Park signage at Stawn’s Honey, then follow the gravel road 0.7 km to the parking area at the trailhead.