SREL Reprint #3394

A simple and reliable system for marking hard-shelled turtles: the North American code

Roy D. Nagle1,2, Owen M. Kinney2,3, J. Whitfield Gibbons2, and Justin D. Congdon2,4

1Environmental Science and Studies, Juniata College, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania 16652, USA
2University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, Aiken, South Carolina 29802, USA
3Darlington School, Rome, Georgia 30161, USA
4Bar Boot Ranch, Douglas, Arizona 85608, USA

Introduction: The ability to mark individual animals so that they can be identified when subsequently recaptured is crucial for conducting ecological, behavioral, population, and life-history studies. Longitudinal data from recaptured individuals provide information on aging, growth, reproduction, survivorship, and movement patterns. Ideally, marks should be permanent, easily read, and not reduce performance or interfere with behavior (Cagle 1939; Plummer and Ferner 2012).

SREL Reprint #3394

Nagle, R. D., O. M. Kinney, J. W. Gibbons, and J. D. Congdon. 2017. A simple and reliable system for marking hard-shelled turtles: the North American code. Herpetological Review 48(2):327-330.

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).