Conservation group buys swath of Outaouais land to protect turtles

They might not know it, but a group of endangered turtles in the Outaouaishas a reason to celebrate.

On Saturday, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) announced it had purchased 31 hectares of land near Bristol, Que., in the hopes of protecting the habitat of Blanding's turtles, a speciesconsidered threatened by the Quebec government and endangered by the federal government.

"It means the land will not be developed. We will not be seeing housing, cabins or any new trails added to the land. Not anytime soon," said Caroline Gagn, the group's program director for western Quebec.

"It's protected in perpetuity."

Abundance of biodiversity

The addition of the 31 hectares of protected forests and wetlands is a key part of the group's conservation strategy for the area.

According to the conservancy, the region's abundance of biodiversity makes it one of the most important natural areas in all of Quebec.It's home to dozens ofspecies listed under Canada's Species At Risk Act and the Quebec Act Respecting Threatened or Vulnerable Species, including the Blanding's turtle.

In fact, the region is home to the largest population of the turtles in the entire province.

Besides habitat destruction, the biggest threat to Blanding's turtles are collisions when crossing roads, Gagn said.

"So by protecting habitats, we prevent the creation of new roads," she said.

Every lost turtle hurts

According to local biologist Jean Fink, Blanding's turtles don't reach sexual maturity until they're 25 years old, and some can live until 80.

"So every turtle that dies, either crushed on the road or sold in animal or pet supplies, is a great loss for the population," said Fink, who on Saturday gave a tour of thenewly purchased preserve, approximately 75 kilometres west of downtown Ottawa.

During the winter,Blanding's turtles spend their time in the mud and other organic material beneath frozen ponds, Fink said, absorbingoxygen through their anuses.

"That's how they breathe in the wintertime," he said.

Province, feds, U.S. all chipped in

Greg Graham, a councillor in Bristol, said it was "wonderful to see" the NCC step up to purchase the land.

At one time, the area was seen as a great location for people to illegally dump garbage, Graham said but that perception has changed noticeably over the past three decades.

"People came out of the woodwork and said, 'Hey, there's something special in that area, and we need to protect it and preserve it and make it available to all Canadians,' Graham said.

Financial support for the purchase came from the federal, Quebec and United States governments, as well as from the private sector.

More than 150 vulnerable species, including the Blanding's turtle, are native to southern part of the Ottawa Valley watershed,the conservation organization said.