TSA Magazine Archives
Download back issues of Turtle Survival, the TSA's annual publication, below. Members receive the full-color magazine each year, as a benefit of their membership in the TSA. To purchase print copies of back issues, visit our STORE!
DONATE HERE
About Turtle Survival Alliance
The Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA) was formed in 2001 as an International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) partnership for sustainable captive management of freshwater turtles and tortoises, and initially designated a Task Force of the IUCN Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group. The TSA arose in response to the rampant and unsustainable harvest of Asian turtle populations to supply Chinese markets, a situation known as the Asian Turtle Crisis.
Since forming, the TSA has become recognized as a global force for turtle conservation, capable of taking swift and decisive action on behalf of critically endangered turtles and tortoises. Although the TSA was organized in response to the Asian Turtle Crisis, the group has been expanded as our understanding of the scope of turtle and tortoise declines has become better understood. The TSA has been particularly involved in recovery efforts where a managed breeding component is part of an overall survival strategy. The TSA employs a comprehensive strategy for evaluating the most critically endangered chelonians that identifies whether a species is prioritized for a captive program or through range country efforts, or a combination of both.
In the past 13 years, TSA secured nonprofit 501(c)(3) status (2005) and has centralized its base operations in South Carolina by opening the Turtle Survival Center (2013). The Turtle Survival Center, which now has AZA certification (2018), is home to a collection of more than 700 turtles and tortoises, representing 30 of the world’s critically endangered species. The TSA has also grown internationally, with significant field projects or programs in Madagascar, Myanmar and India, and additional projects in Belize, Colombia, and throughout Asia.
Today, the TSA is an action-oriented global partnership, focusing on species that are at high risk of extinction, and working in turtle diversity hotspots around the world. Widely recognized as a global catalyst for turtle conservation based on its reputation for swift and decisive action, the TSA has made a bold commitment to zero turtle extinctions in the 21st Century. The TSA is a recognized force for turtle conservation globally. TSA’s conservation actions utilize a three-pronged approach:
1. Restoring populations in the wild where possible;
2. Securing species in captivity through assurance colonies; and
3. Building the capacity to restore, secure and conserve species within their range country.
Indian Star Tortoise
Tampa Bay
Turtle & Tortoise
Society, Inc.
Toad-Headed Turtle
Monthly Newsletter
September 2020 Issue
Meeting Date: September 12, 2020 Meeting time 7pm. This will be a Zoom meeting. Ralph will
send everyone the sign-in and password as the time draws near and is for current members only at
this time.
Guest Speaker: Jordan Donini on his work with Florida Box Turtles. Jordan is a Professor of
Biology at Florida Southwestern State College in Naples, Florida.
Misc Notes
Please update your email information with Ralph Till at rascal1843@aol.com. We only use this
information for club business and it helps for club members to stay up to date on any last minutes
changes that may occur. It will also help ensure that you receive your electronic copy of our
monthly newsletter.
If you would like to submit an article or pictures to be published in the next upcoming newsletter,
please email it to Kim at sparty@tampabay.rr.com. Please submit by the end of the month to be
published in the next month’s newsletter.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact any of the officers listed below:
Elected & Appointed Officers
President - Ralph Till
727-515-7443 Rascal1843@aol.com
Vice President – Mark Randall
20smoke@mindspring.com
Treasurer/Membership - Ralph Till
727-515-7443 Rascal1843@aol.com
Secretary/Public Relations - Kim Illum
sparty@tampabay.rr.com
Newsletter Editor – Mark & Kim Illum
sparty@tampabay.rr.com
Facebook Coordinator – Ralph, Mark R & Kim
https://www.facebook.com/groups/704741876316303/
New Website under construction:
http://www.tbtts.org/
RALPH'S RAMBLINGS
Hello Everyone,
Last month was our second scheduled Zoom virtual meeting and I would like to say thank you to all
who participated. Also a special thanks to our guest, theTurtleRoom's Anthony Pierlioni. Following
Anthony's presentation there was at least 30 minutes of questions from viewers that were
addressed. It was a fun evening.
This month, September 12th, 2020 our guest speaker will be Jordan Donini from Naples. Jordan is a
Professor of Biology at Florida Southwestern State College in Naples, Florida. His presentation will
be on his work with Florida Box Turtles. Afterwards Jordan will take questions from the viewers so
get your box turtle questions ready.
Great News! The City of Clearwater has installed a large triangle shaped shade over the turtle pond
next to the classroom. They went so far as to pour a concrete footing for the poles to support the
shade. I couldn't be more pleased with the committment from the City for this addition. Next we're
planning to upgrade the pump and filter.
Speaking of the turtle pond, I spoke with the area rep for Mazuri Products and they are donating a
large (25lb) bag of aquatic turtle chow for the residents of the pond. Thank you Mazuri!
As always, I'll ask any member to share with the rest of us what turtle/tortoise related project
you're working on. It's important that we all learn.
Enough for now, I'll send the Zoom link out in a few days and look forward to seeing everybody
next Saturday, September 12th at 7:00 pm.
Thanks,
Ralph
Rascal1843@aol.com
Picture from last month Zoom Meeting:
Note from the Newsletter Editor
Hi Everyone,
Each month I am changing the pictures of the turtles/tortoises on the cover page and underneath
putting their common species name. If you have a pet tortoise/turtle that you would like to have
features on the cover, please email it to me along with the common species name and I will get it
featured. Depending on how many submissions I get, your picture may not be featured right way as
I will go down a list each month, but your pet will eventually get featured.
If you have any articles, pictures, or anything else that you would like to contribute to keep our
newsletter, email it over to me. It can be a short story about your turtle/tortoise, a rescue you did
(even if it’s a picture of a turtle/tortoise you took pulling them out of the road safely), something
funny your pet did, turtles/tortoises that you saw while on vacation/walking around a park/etc,
etc..
Our website is still under construction and I would like to start adding some stuff to it. Here are a
few things I was thinking about adding:
1) Native Turtles & Tortoises – if anyone is out and about taking pictures or has pictures of any of
our native turtles & tortoise, pls send them to me.
2) Edible plant list
3) Local wildlife rescue centers or a Veterinarian’s office that treats exotics by county – if anyone
has a vet’s office that you go to, pls email me over their contact info (name, address, & phone
number).
Would there be anyone else who would be willing to help get this info on our website? Also, any
other suggestions or comments?
Please make sure that all submissions are sent to me by the end of the month so I can publish it in
the next month’s newsletter.
See you soon,
Kim Illum
sparty@tampabay.rr.com
Re-Cap from last month’s meeting
Last month’s guest speaker was Anthony Pierlioni with The TurtleRoom’s. Anthony talked about
seeing both sides in education and conservation of breeding programs.
Upcoming Club Speakers
October 10, 2020 – Amanda Ebenhack – The Life of a Licensed Wildlife Rehabber
November 14, 2020 – No guest speaker, this is our annual election night (current members only)
December 12, 2020 – No guest speaker, our annual Christmas party (current members only)
NOTE: If you would be interested in doing a talk, pls contact Ralph Till at Rascal1843@aol.com for
additional information.
Upcoming Club Events
Upcoming reptile shows
Repticon FIRE show – September 5th & 6th 2020
Repticon Kissimmee – October 24th & 25th 2020
Repticon Tampa – November 14th & 15th 2020 – volunteers needed
Repticon Orlando – December 5th & 6th 2020
To the Tampa Bay Turtle & Tortoise Society Members,
I wanted to say a huge thank you to the members for the generous donation to our rescue! It
could not have come at a better time. With COVID and not getting out there, donations have
been very sparse this year but the influx in injuries still continue. The donation will be used to
treat turtles and tortoises we currently have in rehabilitation.
Here are a few residents that we currently have.
Thank you guys so very much!
Amanda Ebenhack
Central Florida Wildlife Center / Turtle Rescue USA
www.turtlerescueusa.com
https://www.facebook.com/turtlerescueusa
Turtles/Tortoises Videos
Who doesn’t like a good back scratching:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=575907509760648
Tortoise pushing soccer ball:
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1013384909075749
Tortoise stealing dog food:
https://www.hindustantimes.com/it-s-viral/funny-video-of-tortoise-stealing-dog-food-leaves-netizens-
in-splits/story-DiBjFL7aqeVVdZ4u38qKyO.html
Turtles/Tortoises in the News
How a $5 roadside tortoise turned into a Halifax icon:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/gopher-tortoise-gus-captivates-visitors-to-halifax-
1.4582183?fbclid=IwAR0q0IGlO9AcyVR6NFpU26CcxAgVT-FX15nPefSMnZ7iP2WS4iK4CJSOXks
Endangers turtles are being released back into the wild:
https://www.westsideseattle.com/ballard-news-tribune/2020/08/24/zoo-news-endangered-
turtles-are-released-wild
Turtles and tortoises in trouble: More than half of all species face extinction:
https://news.mongabay.com/2020/07/turtles-and-tortoises-in-trouble-more-than-half-of-all-
species-face-extinction/
Hi Everyone. This is stop 2 of 2, but this is part 2 of 2 for this stop. 2nd stop: Grand Caymans. We
visited the Cayman Turtle Centre aka The Turtle Farm. It is an amazing place to visit. Besides having
a breeding program for the Green Sea Turtles, they also have a breeding program for the
endangered Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtles. They have smaller size breeding ponds set up.
Baby green sea turtles
Regards, Kim & Mark Illum
Kidz Korner
Turtle/Tortoise Tender Tales (rescue stories)
This rescue story is brought to you by Swamp Girl Adventures Reptile Rehabilitation:
This sulcata tortoise was surrendered by her owner back on 7/25/20. Upon in take owner stated
the tortoise was in good health. The tortoise was with us for a few days when we noticed that she
was not really eating, moving around much and not pooping.
An x-ray reveals a metal object stuck in the digestive track and a huge impaction above that. We are
trying several things to try and get the tortoise to pass the foreign object naturally. We would like to
try and avoid a super painful and expensive surgery for the tortoise but will be done if she is unable
to. This tortoise has a long road of recovery ahead of her.
The other tortoise that came in with her was pooping wood shaving/chips but was doing fine and
was adopted out into a new home.
Please be aware of what/how your tortoise is housed on and any foreign objects in the enclosures.
Sulcatas are like little kids, everything goes into their mouths and they try to eat everything. Always
feed on some type of feeding dishes to help with other items being eaten that should be. Just be
aware of what is around to try and avoid impactions like this one.
Regards, Kim & Crew
Swamp Girl Adventures Reptile Rehabilitation
To see more of the rehabs we currently have and some of the outreach programs we’ve done, please
visit: http://www.swampgirladventures.org/
Also like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SwampGirlAdventures/
More info can be found: http://www.ttpg.org/conferences.php
More info can be found: https://turtlesurvival.org/2020-symposium/
This is free of charge.
Classified Section
You may place your animals, items, services that you have for sale in the club’s newsletter. Ads will
run month to month and you must renew it for every month that you would like. Ads are free to up
to date/paid members, or $5.00 per month ($8.00 for 2 months) for non-members.
Adoptions
Looking to re-home out your reptile? Place a free ad for any reptile that you are looking to adopt
out (free ads are for reptiles which does NOT have a re-homing fee).
Advertising Rates
1/8th Page = $8 per issue or $75 per year (savings of $21).
1/4th Page = $11 per issue or $100 per year (savings of $32).
1/2 Page = $16 per issue or $150 per year (savings of $42).
Full Page = $25 per issue or $225 per year (savings of $75).
Pricing includes art/graphics/color, however you send the advertisement will be published in our
electronic newsletter.
Please email over the Classified/Adoptions/Advertisement info by the end of the month to: Kim at
sparty@tampabay.rr.com
All payments for advertisements should be sent directly to:
Moccasin Lake Nature Park
c/o Tampa Bay Turtle & Tortoise Society, Inc.
2750 Park Trail Ln.
Clearwater, FL 33759
Other Herp Societies
The Turtle & Tortoise Club of Florida – Orlando Chapter
Meets on the 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7pm
Location: Oakland Nature Preserve, 747 Machete Trail, Oakland, FL 34787
Suncoast Herpetological Society Inc.
website: http://www.kingsnake.com/suncoastherpsociety/SHSHome.htm
meets on the 4th Saturday of the month at 6:00pm.
Location: Moccasin Lake Nature Park 2750 Park Trail Ln. Clearwater, FL 33759
Central Florida Herpetological Society
website: Centralfloridaherpsociety.org
meets on the 4th Sunday of every other month at 2:00 PM but you want to be there between 1:00 -
1:30 PM for parking
Location: Orlando Public Library, Downtown Branch, Anderson Room 3rd Floor, 101 East Central
Blvd Orlando, FL 32801
Calusa Herpetological Society
website: calusaherp.org
meets on the first Thursday at 7:00 PM
Location: In the Iona house at the Calusa Nature Center
Jacksonville Herpetological Society
website: jaxherp.tripod.com
meets first Wednesday of every month at 7:30 PM
Location: Museum of Science and History (MOSH), Museum circle, Jacksonville, FL
W'eel Turtle Sculpture: Dunseith, North Dakota
Made in 1982 from 2,000 tire rims that never made it to their destination, W'eel stands sentinel on the
North Dakota prairie and lures customers to Dale's Thrifty Barn, the gas station/cafe/motel responsible
for its existence. The 40-foot turtle's one-ton head bobs from side to side, perhaps acknowledging the
surrounding Turtle Mountains or the annual turtle derby in nearby Boissevain, Manitoba.
Membership and Newsletter subscription form
Annual membership fee: $20.00 per year, and the membership includes:
- Electronic Monthly newsletter sent to your email address
- Free Classified’s in newsletter (members only) as well as low cost
advertisement rates.
- Annual Auction, Christmas Party, and Office Elections
- Monthly Meetings in an indoor classroom setting that consists of the
following:
- Different guest speaker each month
- Raffle Prizes
- Info about upcoming events/reptile shows/field trips/etc..
Date/Time: Meets the 2nd Saturday of every month at 7:00pm
Meeting Address: Moccasin Lake Nature Park 2750 Park Trail Ln.
Clearwater, FL 33759
Complete the form below and bring it with you to the next upcoming meeting
or mail it along with payment to:
Moccasin Lake Nature Park
c/o Tampa Bay Turtle & Tortoise Society, Inc.
2750 Park Trail Ln.
Clearwater, FL 33759
Check one:
_______ New Membership _______ Membership Renewal
Name: _________________________________________________________________________________
Address: _______________________________________________________________________________
City, State, Zipcode: ___________________________________________________________________
Email: _______________________________________ Phone#: ________________________________
NOTE: We would never sell or trade your information. This information is strictly for club use only.
Answer Key