http://chelonianresearch.wordpress.com Dedicated to the study and conservation of turtles and tortoises of the world. Tue, 19 May 2009 03:23:29 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 http://chelonianresearch.wordpress.com/2009/04/23/summary-report-of-galapagos-expedition-december-2008/#comment-14 Matthew Godfrey Tue, 19 May 2009 03:23:29 +0000 http://chelonianresearch.wordpress.com/?p=75#comment-14 This is a fascinating post and I enjoy the discussion of morphological vs. genetic differences across populations. One thing that strikes me is how often turtle populations appear to have been "mixed up" by human intervention, including: green turtles (by flying eggs from Tortuguero to various places around the Caribbean for incubation and release), diamondback terrapins (from captive rearing and subsequent long-distance releases in the early part of the 20th Century), red-eared sliders (which appear to have colonized almost every continent via the pet trade). Then again, turtles seem to have a marvelous propensity for mixing up their own genetic code through hybridization - I saw today two large juvenile green x loggerhead crosses that had originally cold-stunned in Massachusetts and were released back to the ocean today following successful rehabilitation. I look forward to more posts! This is a fascinating post and I enjoy the discussion of morphological vs. genetic differences across populations. One thing that strikes me is how often turtle populations appear to have been “mixed up” by human intervention, including: green turtles (by flying eggs from Tortuguero to various places around the Caribbean for incubation and release), diamondback terrapins (from captive rearing and subsequent long-distance releases in the early part of the 20th Century), red-eared sliders (which appear to have colonized almost every continent via the pet trade). Then again, turtles seem to have a marvelous propensity for mixing up their own genetic code through hybridization – I saw today two large juvenile green x loggerhead crosses that had originally cold-stunned in Massachusetts and were released back to the ocean today following successful rehabilitation. I look forward to more posts!

]]>