By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
The chances of survival are extremely slim for diamondback terrapins – denizens of the Jersey Shore that make their habitat in the brackish waters of the marshlands.
Their eggs are constantly under threat from poaching by raccoons, foxes, skunks and other predators.
Even if the hatchlings make it to adulthood, they face the perils of falling into storm drains or being crushed by traffic when they venture across the roads in search of nesting spots in summer.
“Only one hatched egg in a thousand becomes an adult turtle,” said Steve Ahern, co-founder of Sea Isle Terrapin Rescue.
However, hundreds of children and adults turned out in sweltering temperatures Sunday morning to join Ahern in giving 30 diamondback terrapins a chance of survival by safely releasing them into the marshlands in Sea Isle City.
After a hiatus in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the turtle release program resumed Sunday for its eighth year.
The huge public turnout reflected the love of diamondbacks in a community where the fictional Sara the Turtle is famously known as the town mascot, symbolizing Sea Isle’s concern for the environment.
The importance of turtles is also underscored by the “Watch for Turtles” and “Turtle X-ing” signs that are scattered around the city to remind motorists to be careful about the diamondbacks lumbering across the road while searching for sandy spots in which to lay their eggs.
Dozens of children waded through the mud and ankle-high marsh grass at the water’s edge to help set the turtles free into the back bay next to Sea Isle’s kayak launch site and fishing pier at the Dealy Field recreation complex on 60th Street.
One of the kids, 12-year-old Hunter Perich, smiled while watching the turtle he released leisurely swim away and then poke its head above water, as if to say a final goodbye to its human protectors.
“It was nice to help him. He’s going to be safe,” Hunter said.
Hunter never sees diamondback terrapins at his home in Columbus, Ohio. Yet his family members, including his mother, Julie Perich, his twin sister, Avery, and his grandparents, are exposed to the turtles when they vacation for the summer in Sea Isle.
“It’s really fun. They’re adorable. They have a weird texture,” Hunter said of the turtles’ shells.
Ahern, whose wife, Susan, helps him run Sea Isle Terrapin Rescue, described the incredibly long odds of survival for the turtles in remarks to hundreds of people who packed the fishing pier next to the release site.
He noted that they can live to be 30 to 35 years old if they are lucky enough to make it into adulthood.
In addition to their natural predators, the diamondbacks are threatened by both boat and car traffic, Ahern explained. He said people who rescue them from car traffic should place the turtles on the side of the road in the direction they are heading.
“If you try to change that rhythm, they will turn around and go back in the direction they want to go,” Ahern said, noting that could mean they venture back into the road and get crushed by traffic.
Crab traps are another manmade hazard for the diamondbacks. The turtles can enter the traps but not get out, drowning in the process. Ahern urged people to use crab traps equipped with “excluders” that prevent turtles from entering the traps and drowning.
Some of the 30 diamondbacks that were released Sunday were hatched from eggs recovered from females killed in the road. Others were male turtles rescued from storm drains and were kept at Stockton University before they were ready to be set free in the marsh, Ahern said.
Children got to see the turtles close up and gently touch them while Ahern and other organizers carried plastic tubs that held the diamondbacks.
Michael Cronin, 4, bent down to get a closer look at a group of turtles in one container.
“He likes how the turtles flip over on their backs and that their shells are all different,” said Nicole Cronin, Michael’s mother.
The Cronins, who live in Springfield, Pa., vacation in Sea Isle. Michael’s father, Patrick Cronin, is a science teacher at Lower Merion High School in Pennsylvania. During their time in Sea Isle, the Cronins have become well-acquainted with the diamondbacks at the shore.
“We always rescue them on the street. He’s already experienced in doing that,” Nicole Cronin said of her young son.
