NARRATOR: Soaked
in the drama
of life and death,
these reptiles
overcome the odds
and thrive
in the fresh water
of central
Nova Scotia.
The Wild Wild East's
wetland habitats
are a refuge for
old growth forests
and the species
that depend upon them,
at the core of
the second largest
biosphere reserve
in Canada.
On the jagged coast of
Canada's Eastern shore,
a delicate and diverse
ecosystem
thrives on the fringes
of the continent.
Welcome
Welcome
to the Wild Wild East.
NARRATOR: Salty shores
and rocky cliffs,
separate the province
of Nova Scotia
from the rest
of Canada.
Though surrounded
by the sea,
Nova Scotia has
no shortage of fresh water.
Abundant rain,
coastal fog
and temperate summers
have resulted
in a multitude
of bogs, ponds,
streams and lakes.
A rich network
of wetland habitats.
It's the beginning
of summer
in Kejimkujik
National Park,
located in southwestern
Nova Scotia.
Established in 1968,
it's the second largest
biosphere reserve in Canada.
It is also
a National Historic site,
the ancient home
of the Mi'kmaq people
who lived here
for thousands of years.
Kejimkujik
National Park
protects this unique
wetland habitat
from human
encroachment,
and ensures the survival
of its animal inhabitants.
Like the Blanding's
turtle.
Blanding's turtles are
among Nova Scotia's
rarest creatures.
As few as 500 remain
here in the wild.
This population probably
migrated into Nova Scotia
during a warm period
after the last glaciation,
about 5,000
years ago.
Blanding's mostly live around
the Great Lakes,
with some small populations
on the coast
and in Nova Scotia.
About 3,000 years ago,
the land bridge
connecting Nova Scotia
to New Brunswick flooded,
cutting
the turtles off
from their mainland
population.
As night falls
over the park,
one of the most
important residents
prepares
to lay her eggs.
She slowly makes
her way onto shore,
looking for the perfect
spot for her nest.
Agile in the water,
she is much less graceful
on the stony shoreline.
Blanding's take
approximately 14 years
to reach
sexual maturity,
and can live
over 70 years.
With a slow
reproductive rate,
they're particularly
vulnerable to environmental
and habitat threats.
This makes the Blanding's
a species at risk,
so the stakes are high
for her clutch
to hatch
successfully.
Remarkably,
Blanding's turtles
do not appear to age
once they reach adulthood.
A 20-year old and
a 70-year old turtle
are nearly
indistinguishable.
Blanding's turtles
hibernate underwater
from mid-November
until early April
to survive
the harsh winters.
Blanding's lay their eggs
in the early summer
under the relative safety
of darkness.
The first step is finding
a suitable nesting site
where she will lay
between 6 and 20 eggs.
Nest selection is
a careful procedure.
Guided by her instincts,
she searches for a nest
with the right
combination of soil,
temperature
and moisture.
Temperature plays
an important role
in determining the sex
of the hatchlings.
When it's warmer, only female
hatchlings will emerge.
Cooler temperatures favor
the development of males.
Annual temperature variations
of just a few degrees
ensure
a balanced ratio
between male and female
hatchlings over the years.
But this also makes turtles
especially susceptible
to climate change.
Researchers claim that if
the average earth temperature
rises even slightly,
it would result
in only female clutches
being born,
radically altering
the reproductive future
of the Blanding's
turtle.
Once she chooses
a suitable nest site,
she excavates the land
with her back legs.
She carves out a nest
shaped like a vase,
round enough
to hold her eggs,
with a smaller
opening
to deter numerous
egg predators.
Methodical
and meticulous,
the egg laying
procedure
can take over
five hours.
The Blanding's eggs
are slightly less than
half the size
of a chicken's egg.
There are about
two minutes
between the laying
of each egg.
When all 12 of
her eggs are laid,
she covers the nest.
The sand she uses
to cover her eggs
is the only thing protecting
the next generation.
This is her final act of
motherhood for the season.
She retreats to the safety
of the pond.
And joins the aquatic
ecosystem she calls home.
Good nesting conditions
in a certain spot
means multiple
Blanding's
will often gather
in one location,
which comes with inherent
dangers for the eggs.
Rich in protein,
eggs are dug up
by the predators
of the wetlands.
A raccoon lurking
in the nearby trees
could gobble up
an entire generation
in just one evening.
Scattered across
the beach,
evidence from
a recent burglary.
With no new generation
of turtles ready to hatch,
the Blanding's
could be in trouble.
Fortunately,
the endangered turtles
have a helping hand
in the human world.
The Mersey Tobeatic
Research Institute,
aided by a team
of volunteers,
leads the fight to save
the Blanding's turtles
in Nova Scotia.
They place these cages
over the nests
to protect eggs
in vulnerable areas
from raccoons
and foxes
until the turtles
are ready to hatch.
The Blandings'
wetland sanctuaries
don't just protect
this endangered species,
they also perform
another important role
on a much
larger scale.
Fresh water
environments
are a crucial part
of the inland ecosystem.
They clean fresh water,
improving quality,
limit the effects
of flooding
by trapping
excess drainage
during
heavy rainfalls,
and the shallow water
allows light to penetrate
and sustains a huge
diversity of plants
as well as
aquatic creatures
above and below
the surface.
Like this
American toad,
just one of the 6,000
different amphibian species
found around
the world.
The word amphibian
is Greek in origin,
and means
"both lives".
Species like the northern
leopard frog
begin their "first life"
living underwater,
breathing through gills
like a fish,
before going through
a metamorphosis,
from tadpole
to frog
and having
their "second life"
breathing air
on the surface.
Because their life cycle shifts
between water and land,
amphibians
are sensitive
to the environmental
conditions of both.
And so scientists
believe amphibians
like the eastern
American toad,
are "ecosystem
indicators."
But these days, they're more
like canaries in a coal mine.
Amphibian populations
have suffered
widespread declines
in recent decades.
There are many possible reasons
why this is happening.
The shallow water
they depend upon
also allows
increased exposure
to UV radiation from the sun,
which is thought
to cause high mortality
rates in juveniles.
The potential lowering
of fresh water levels
due to a warming climate
in places like eastern Canada,
increases this hazard.
Habitat destruction and
pollution also take their toll.
The rate of extinction across
all amphibian species
is 100 times the natural
extinction rate.
This loss affects
the entire food chain
of the wetlands.
Undulating through
the water,
a Maritime
garter snake
uses the curves
of its body
to glide across
the surface.
To the amphibians
of Nova Scotia,
this is
their main predator.
To locate its prey,
the snake collects
chemicals in the air
with its tongue.
It then inserts the fork into
a special sense receptor,
called
the Jacobson's organ,
on the roof
of its mouth.
The snake uses this process
to 'taste the air' for prey.
With a North American toad
in its jaws,
this snake demonstrates
how it can swallow a meal
twice its size.
It's not a true venomous snake,
like a rattler,
yet the garter
snake's bite
helps subdue the frog
so it can be swallowed whole.
Saliva lubricates
the frog,
as the garter flexes
its stomach muscles
along its thorax
to consume its meal.
Now swallowed,
the digestion process begins.
A Blanding's turtle
is also on the hunt.
They feed on insects such as
dragonfly nymphs and beetles,
as well as snails, worms,
fishes, and vegetation.
They can spend
over two hours
hunting for food
underwater
before coming up
for air.
The bite-sized fish
do their best
to evade the Blanding's,
moving in rigid formation.
Seeing the turtle
approach,
minnows display
the "selfish herd theory."
The most vulnerable fish
are the ones
on the periphery
of the school.
So when
a predator swims in,
the minnows compete to be
in the safety of the centre.
The turtle isn't as swift
a swimmer as the minnows.
They elude her.
She'll move on
to an easier meal.
Snakes,
fish,
frogs and toads,
all co-exist in
the protective waters
of Kejimkujik
National Park.
This sanctuary
helps secure
the future
for the wetlands
and its inhabitants.
But not every threat
can be controlled.
Blanding's
don't migrate;
however, females will sometimes
travel long distances
to seek suitable
nesting sites.
Leaving the protection
of the pond
they face the modern world
head-on.
Putting the females
at the greatest risk.
Traversing asphalt
and dodging cars,
the Blanding's
ancient migration routes
are now
hazardous pathways.
In early September,
as the summer warmth
begins to wane,
new life begins to stir
along the lake-shores
of Kejimkujik
National Park.
Emerging up to 3 months
after being laid,
the Blanding's turtle takes
its first steps with purpose.
Instinct and the sun's
reflection on the lake
lead the newly hatched
turtle to water.
It's barely bigger
than a quarter.
Its carapace will harden
as the turtle ages.
For the next two years,
the young Blanding's
remain vulnerable to
predation from raccoons,
coyotes, foxes
and skunks.
But the water
provides a safe place,
shelter amongst
the lily pads.
One by one the Blanding's
siblings emerge
and waddle
into their new world.
It will be nearly
two decades
before they reach
adulthood,
and only 4% of Blanding's
will make it.
Once
they're fully grown,
their survival rate
skyrockets to 98%
due to their size
and formidable shell.
But even then
they'll remain timid,
retreating underwater
or into their shells,
when danger
rears its head.
Still, they need
all the help they can get.
They have allies
on the lookout.
In 1990 the Province
of Nova Scotia
gave the Blanding's turtle
protected status.
Since then the reptile has
become the literal poster child
for wetland
conservation.
It looks the part too.
The natural curve
of the turtle's mouth
makes it seem
as if it's always smiling.
Protecting Blanding's
means keeping tabs
on their movement
through the protected areas
and minimizing
potential hazards.
Using a radio transmitter,
a team of volunteers
track down adult turtles
that have been tagged.
Once they find
their nesting locations,
they can monitor
survival rates
of last year's
hatchlings.
Every hatchling
is weighed, measured
and marked with notches
in its carapace.
so it can be identified
for years to come.
A quick snip to the shell
identifies them for life.
Turtles were first
marked this way
over 50 years ago.
Some of those turtles
are still alive today
in these same
shallow waters.
Fall gives way
to winter.
And underneath the frozen
surface of the water,
the Blanding's
spend the season
tucked into
the muddy lake bottom.
Here they're warmed
by the heat
retained in the surface
layers of soil and sediment.
When spring arrives,
the turtles thaw out
and swim back
to the surface,
no worse for wear.
When the seasons move on
and the ground thaws,
all of the wetlands
spring back to life.
It's mating season for this pair
of Eastern painted turtles
basking in the sun to warm
their cold-blooded bodies.
Painted turtles are found
across North America
and are the most abundant
turtles on the continent.
Mating begins as soon as turtles
emerge from hibernation.
The male tries to
win over the female
by stroking
his partner's neck.
After repeating this behavior
several times,
the female sinks to the bottom
and the male follows,
and mating begins.
After mating,
the female painted turtle
will continue that success
in due time,
when she's ready
to lay her eggs.
It all depends on the right
environmental conditions
of weather
and available food.
She can delay fertilization
by storing sperm in her body
until conditions
are ideal.
If the right conditions
aren't met,
she can hold onto the sperm
for up to 3 years.
Female painted turtles
sometimes exhibit
a mysterious behavior
when preparing a nest.
She will sometimes
dig several nests
but not lay eggs.
Perhaps sensing that
the moisture, warmth,
texture, or smell
are not right,
she moves on and
leaves behind a 'false nest',
which could also
act as a decoy
to distract predators.
While habitat loss
and road kills
have reduced
the turtle's population,
the painted turtle's
ability
to live in
human-disturbed settings,
has helped
the population thrive.
They also have a speedier
reproductive rate
than most turtles, reaching
sexual maturity at age 5,
which helps them replenish
their population more quickly.
Fossil records reveal
that turtles appeared on earth
at the same time
as the dinosaurs.
Now, they may be facing
the same fate.
Their survival isn't just about
protecting the turtles,
the wetland ecosystem and
the other animals it supports
are also at stake.
To endure, all species
depend on the ability
to adapt, reproduce
and thrive.
And the fundamental key
to all creatures' survival
is water.
The wetlands are crucial
to maintaining
a healthy, natural
water ecology.
Wetlands filter and
help maintain balanced
levels of water
within the ecosystem
through a continuous cycle
of rain and evaporation.
They also protect us
from climate change,
by absorbing carbon and
reducing greenhouse gases.
And wetlands
protect life
at the base
of the food chain.
Though progress seems to move
at a turtle's pace,
there have been
significant steps
in the right
direction.
Wetland habitats and
the creatures in them
are protected
all over the world
in places like
Kejimkujik National Park.
Preserving
a vital habitat
so all the animals
of the wetlands
can wade toward
a better tomorrow.
All together,
in the Wild Wild East.
♪ THEME MUSIC ♪
