By Jakob T., Simon D., Alexandra J., Kevin L.

We are students in Rockport Middle School, and we have been taking care of the turtles for 9 months now.

Original photo taken by Jessica Kagle (Kestrel Staff, Sept. 2018)

Original photo taken by RMS 7th graders (May 2019)

Description of a Blanding’s turtle:

The Blanding’s turtle is a threatened species of turtle that lives in wetlands in the northeast. It is characterized by its bright yellow throat and medium size.

What is a Head Start program?

A head start program is a program that helps threatened or endangered species, such as Blanding’s turtles, grow in numbers. They are taken when they are very young and are nurtured until they are well equipped enough to be left in the wild. The turtles stay with humans because in the wild, very few survive, and nurturing them in our facilities is safer for them. For example, a Blanding’s turtle can live to be 80 years old, but very few survive their journey home. They get run over by cars, eaten by predators, etc. The Head Start program helps keep those threats at bay.

Original photo taken by RMS 7th graders