Free the Turtle
On June 16, 2007, Shannon, Jason, Jen, Mary, J, Kristin and myself gathered at 10:00 am to bring full circle the “Save the Terrapin” Fund started by D-7 Tailgate last fall. The event was hosted by Marguerite Whilden of the Terrapin Institute as a reward for the $300 we were able to raise during last years tailgating season. And though the action by the Maryland State Legislature, signed into law this spring, which banned the commercial harvest of terrapins makes the previous method of paying $15 to buy back terrapins unnecessary, there are still plenty of obstacles for the little guys to overcome, and the money was greatly appreciated.
We
meet up in the parking lot of the Chesapeake Exploration Center right off of 50,
just west of Kent Narrows. There Marguerite was waiting with a picnic basket
full of Terps. These particular terps were raised in a laboratory from a very
young age. Young terrapins are extremely venerable to predation from fox,
hawks, auto’s, and basically anything else that is bigger than it and wants to
eat. But by raising the turtles past this delicate stage, it allows them to
re-enter their native habitat better suited for survival. Most of these Terps
were 1to 1.5 years of age. And since it is not out of the question for them to
live up to 50 years, it is pretty important for them to survive this initial
stage.
After our discussion was wrapped up we headed out onto the narrow peninsula where we were to release our turtles. After walking for 5 to 10 minutes past tick infested grass, which the locals repeated warned us about, we made it down to the beach. But before we went out onto the sand, Marguerite was able to locate a couple Terrapin nest that were raided by foxes. You could tell by the indentation in the sand about the size of a volleyball surrounded by egg shells and fox droppings. This just goes to illustrate that the terrapins have problems much bigger than ending up in a waterman’s net.
After
safely navigating the poison ivy field, we made our way down to the beach were
back behind all the reeds and grass there was a pretty nice beach roughly 5-10
feet wide which stretched 60 some yards from end to end. Here is where our
turtle’s captivity came to an end. Marguerite drew a line in the sand in which
to serve as a starting line, with the finish being the Chester River just 5 feet
away. Since there were 7 of us participating and 14 terrapins, we released them
in two heats. But before our turtles could make their mad dash (well for those
that did, I’m thinking J’s last turtle still might be looking for the water) we
took time to take a few pictures and make a wish. Marguerite explained that in
many societies around the world, the turtle represented good luck, and it was
believed that if you place a worry upon a turtles back, they would bare the
burden for you, and carry it away. So before the race began we all took a few
moments to place a worry on our turtles back. For those who care, my worry was
about the Maryland QB situation coming into this season, I would like to see it
resolved sooner rather than later, keep in mind this isn’t a birthday wish and
no one said you couldn’t tell anyone!
Regardless,
after the worries were placed we set the turtles behind the starting line where
I was putting my 7 game turtle racing streak on the line. Marguerite took one
final picture and then they were off. I was pretty confident in my turtle since
his legs had been churning ever since he set his eyes on me, and once my grip
was loosened, he wasn’t about to risk being re-captured. So with out so much as
a thought or hesitation, he was into the water, and my turtle racing streak had
reached 8 in a row. For some reason, living things like to get away from me as
quickly as possible, reminded me of trying to get a prom date in high school!!
Anyway, as we released the turtles into the water Marguerite explained what was going to happen next. Had we been 5th graders the story would have been different, but Marguerite explained that when we release turtles into the water they swim out along the bottom, and then after a few minutes, they will surface to see where they are in relation to land. Once they find their bearings, it’s back down below they go. She tells the 5th graders that this is the turtle saying good bye and thank you, and to drive the point home, as the terrapins go back under water they make a little motion with their back leg that resembles a wave good bye. Though we only got to know our turtles for a few moments before we released them, I still like the explanation the 5th graders get, instead of the more scientific one us “adults” get.
So
as we said good bye to round one, without fail every single terrapin (even
Shannon’s little Scooter) came back up for one last wave. It was pretty neat to
watch. But that wasn’t the end. We still had another batch to go. So once
again we grabbed turtles and set them down just behind the start line and then
let them go. I knew right away I was in trouble for mine didn’t hardly move at
all. In fact most of the other 7 were already in the water before he finally
figured out what he wanted to do, and as a result, my 8 turtle race win streak
came to a halt. In a way though it was a relief. Ever since Isabelle’s
smashing performance in the 2001 Anne Arundel County Fair, I’ve been walking
around with a huge target on my chest. I know people are gunning for me, and as
terrible as it was to lose, it was also a relief. I feel like a monkey is off
my back now.
The good news involving my last Terrapin was that despite it’s lack of forward motion it still didn’t finish in last. That honor went to J’s guy who took about 5 minutes to get things together. Interestingly enough, once he made it into the water one of the early Terps was right there waiting for him, as if to say “Over here, let’s go!”. There was probably a scientific explanation for that too, but we’ll leave it that the one was waiting up for his buddy. After all, some things are better left off without explanation.
So with the last pair of turtles heading off together our mission was complete. We were lucky enough to have a perfect June day so we did linger for another 15-20 minutes to talk about such topics ranging from future Terrapin Institute Projects to the mating habits of horse shoe crabs. All in all it was a perfect day. The beach, the water, and the satisfaction of knowing all our drinking and friendly gambling from the 2006 Maryland Football Tailgating season went to a cause that is near and dear to every University of Maryland fan’s heart. Afterwards we crossed over the Kent Narrows and sat down for a nice lunch. We each ordered two bowls of Terrapin Soup….just kidding.
Thanks again to Marguerite Whilden of the Terrapin Institute for taking time on a beautiful Saturday afternoon to allow some “Adult Kids” a pretty cool and worthwhile experience.
Thanks for the help guys!!