Keep an eye out for Ontario's turtles, who are hitting the road for mating season
Love is in the air for Ontario's turtle population and a group called the Turtle Guardians says they've been busy dealing with the influx.
They're hoping residents will keep an eye out if you're driving on area roads in the next little bit.
The group has been fielding about 120 calls a day from nesting grounds near the road in both cottage country and in Sudbury.
"They are interlinked with this Earth – and so it was a wet and wild June and that was a signal to all the females, all the moms to get out and go nest," said Leora Berman of the Turtle Guardians.
Berman figures each of the turtles will cross the road about 12 times a year, but many are hurt or killed by passing cars in the process.
And he said a busy population doesn't exactly mean a healthy population; turtles are a threatened species in Ontario.
"In southern Ontario, there are portions where we have lost 90 per cent of our wetlands, all the way up to cottage country, we have lost a significant portion of our wetlands and hibernation," Berman said.
"The vast majority of turtles that come in (are) hit by vehicles – that's the most common scenario by far," said Turtle Pond Wildlife Centre's Gloria Morissette.
Morissette has one 41-pound snapping turtle they rescued from Lake Laurentian who's currently battling an eye ailment.
If you have to rescue a turtle, Morissette said it's important that you do it safely and don't change the direction the turtle is heading.
"That doesn't mean that there's a wetland in front of them," she said.
"People shouldn't assume that they're going the wrong way and try to switch them to where the water is because where they try to find next sites is often away from water sources and they'll travel kilometres to try and find and appropriate nest site."
Morissette said it's also been a busy time for bunnies. She's asking people to leave baby rabbits alone because they have not been abandoned by their mothers.
Her centre is now the only one left in the region. After it fills up, the next closest is Parry Sound.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'He didn't want to die': Family of Calgary man killed in standoff speaks out
Family of a Calgary man killed after a 30-hour standoff with police last week are speaking out, sharing details of the tense and heart-wrenching experience.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Ohio mom who left toddler alone 10 days when she went on vacation pleads guilty to aggravated murder
An Ohio mother whose 16-month-old daughter died after being left home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer while she went on vacation was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Retired teacher pleads guilty to paying for sex with 15-year-old in Collingwood, Ont.
In a Barrie courtroom on Monday, a retired high school teacher from the Niagara Region pleaded guilty to sexual touching and obtaining sexual services from a 15-year-old boy in Collingwood in 2021.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
5 charged in Calgary kidnappings that targeted women
Calgary police have charged five men in a pair of kidnappings last year that targeted innocent victims.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Canadian commander of volunteer fighter group dies in Ukraine
A Canadian-born commander of the so-called Norman Brigade, a volunteer fighting group in Ukraine, has died.
Woman, 18, killed by co-worker's vehicle on Highway 1 in Moose Jaw
Moose Jaw police say an 18-year-old woman who was at work has died from injuries she sustained in a collision with a vehicle being driven by her co-worker last Thursday.