Baby Diamondback Terrapin! Pics!

[kookykate328]

I tried to find out about the laws and I'm pretty sure there is a certain time during the year when you are aloud to catch diamondback terrapins. I'll look at the turtle forums and I can try to give him some small snails.

 

[lizard of oz]

It's probably no older than a couple months old. My turtle doesn't like the pellets, so I got some red shrimp from the pet store and he loves them. Whats his/her name?

 

[kookykate328]

It's probably no older than a couple months old. My turtle doesn't like the pellets, so I got some red shrimp from the pet store and he loves them. Whats his/her name?

His/her name is Sandie I can try to give him the red shrimp too.

 

[kookykate328]

So he's still not eating but right now he has some little bugs that he'll hopefully eat. I've only seen him open his mouth once and I don't know how to get him to open it. He doesn't even seem interested in the food but he must be hungry though. Would the water temperature or air temperature effect his appetite?

 

[lizard of oz]

So he's still not eating but right now he has some little bugs that he'll hopefully eat. I've only seen him open his mouth once and I don't know how to get him to open it. He doesn't even seem interested in the food but he must be hungry though. Would the water temperature or air temperature effect his appetite?

yes the water temp should be in the mid 70's

 

[kookykate328]

Ok thanks the water was a little bit cold

 

[popsicle]

N.J. Regulations, Possession of Nongame & Exotic Wildlife, Subchapter 4. Nongame and Exotic Wildlife, 7:25-4.2 Permit required:
“(a) Except as hereinafter provided, no person shall possess any nongame species or exotic species of any mammal, bird, reptile or amphibian unless such person has first received both the appropriate permit from the Department as listed in N.J.A.C. 7:25-4.6(a) as well as any other state, municipal, or Federal permits or licenses which may be required to possess such species. Any permit issued to an applicant by the Department for the possession of any animal shall not exempt that applicant from compliance with any other law of the State of New Jersey or any municipal or federal law… (b) No person shall liberate within this state any nongame species or exotic mammal, bird, reptile, or amphibian unless such person has first received a permit from the Department, which explicitly allows the release of nongame species or exotic mammals, birds, reptiles or amphibians.”
N.J. Regulations, Subchapter 21. Terrapin Regulations:
“Subchapter historical note. Subchapter 21, Terrapin Regulations, was adopted as R1981 d.198, effective July 9, 1981. See: 13 N.J.R. 405(a).
7:25-21.2 Designation of terrapin season
No person shall take, catch, possess, expose for sale or attempt to catch or take any Malaclemys palustris, commonly known as diamondback terrapin, except between November 1 and March 31.
7:25-21.2 Taking of terrapin
No person shall catch, take, or attempt to catch or take any terrapin from any of the waters of this state by means of a trap, pot, fyke, seine, weir or net of any description.
7:25-21.3 Size requirement
No person shall take, catch or possess any terrapin less than five inches long, measured lengthwise along the shell, not take or destroy eggs of any terrapin.”

So, you're supposed to have a permit before you take a terrapin, and you're not supposed to take any less than 5" long.

ETA: this information was easy to find when googling "new jersey diamondback terrapin laws"

 

[kookykate328]

Oh. So what do I do. We didn't have the permit before getting him but now that we do have him do we get the permit or wait until he is 5 inches long? And it says you can't use a trap, pot, fyke, seine, weir or net of any description but we used our hands and just picked him up. Also, the coastguard was with us when we found him and when we said we would bring him home and he didn't say anything but I'm not sure if the coastguard really knows or cares about this kind of stuff.

 

[popsicle]

Coast Guard folks may or may not know local wildlife laws--it depends on if the person is from your area and has an interest in such things. They are not wildlife agents and probably have no jurisdiction to do anything about wildlife violations (which you've committed).

The traps inclusion probably refers to people (with permits) for catching tarrapins so they don't set a trap next to a known nest, forgetting about the trap and coming back in a week and having 100+ dead tarrapins (also to reduce excessive catch and incidental catch etc).

I personally would release the baby terrapin rather than watch it starve. You're in a jam, you took it without the proper permit, and it's too small even if you had a permit--you have no documentation that it was legally captured or purchased now or after it grows to 5".

Terrapins (specifically wild hatched) have very specific water needs--brackish. Do you have a hydrometer? Minimum housing requirements for adult male terrapins (smaller than females) is 75 gallons--are you able to provide this?

 

[shadow rabbit10]

Oh. So what do I do. We didn't have the permit before getting him but now that we do have him do we get the permit or wait until he is 5 inches long? And it says you can't use a trap, pot, fyke, seine, weir or net of any description but we used our hands and just picked him up. Also, the coastguard was with us when we found him and when we said we would bring him home and he didn't say anything but I'm not sure if the coastguard really knows or cares about this kind of stuff.

What you can do is turn him in to a care facility, even if you apply for a permit he will be confiscated because he is too small, and you will not be getting him back when he is an adult. Also, there are not permits in NJ for having turtles as pets, there are only permits for having them for scientific research purposes. I know a lot about N. Diamondback Terrapins because I go to an environmental school and we do a lot to help educate the public about these guys and conserve them. In fact, one of the main things we tell people is that these are not pets. My school does have a scientific permit for these guys, however the only terrapins and other turtles we keep are ones that cannot be returned to the wild. The right thing to do is turn him into a care facility.