By MADDY VITALE
Motorists traveling on Sea Isle Boulevard, the city’s main gateway into town, probably don’t notice the metal mesh fencing attached to the guardrails.
The intricate barrier installed over the last year is designed to save the lives of the diamondback terrapins that emerge from the marsh in search of sandy soil to lay their eggs.
The fencing replaced plastic tubing that had gaps that the turtles crawled through and onto the roadway.
Steve Ahern, who, along with his wife, Susan, runs the Sea Isle Terrapin Rescue organization, said they are pleased with the results of the barrier, which appears to be doing what it is supposed to – protect terrapins that otherwise might have been run over by cars.
Nesting season for the diamondback terrapins begins at the end of May and lasts until about the third week in July.
“The fencing was terrific. It was very effective and saved a lot of turtles,” Steve Ahern said Wednesday of the first nesting season with fencing along the boulevard. “Mortality over the last few years before the boulevard project averaged about 75 terrapins (annually).”
He said the number is nowhere near 75 since the fencing was installed. Turtles look for a place above the high tide line to lay their eggs, so they would cross the road to find nesting areas.
Terrapins lay anywhere from eight to 12 eggs and can come out up to three times in a nesting season. With heavily trafficked roads such as Sea Isle Boulevard, it can mean death for many of the turtles.
Diamondback terrapins can live for 30 to 40 years, but with traffic and roadwork and deaths related to the fishing industry, longevity is always a concern.
Only one egg in a thousand grows up to be an adult turtle. While diamondback terrapins are not classified as threatened or endangered in New Jersey, they are listed as decreasing.
The fencing along Sea Isle Boulevard works, but it is not 100 percent. There are areas where the turtles can get through downed fencing in some spots.
Also, along the boulevard, there is an opening for a marina that gives terrapins a wide area to try and cross the roadway.
In those cases, the Aherns give advice to anyone willing to help the turtles.
If drivers or pedestrians see a turtle crossing the road, and if they may safely do so, they can pick up the turtle and move it across the road.
The terrapins must be placed in the direction they are going, or they may turn around.
For more information, call Steve and Susan Ahern at the Sea Isle Terrapin Rescue organization at (609) 263-7358 and also check out the Facebook page.
