Appendices (for online publication only)
Appendix 1. Geographic range of the painted turtle, Chrysemys picta (shading), with the range
of the western subspecies, C.p. bellii, encompassed by the outlined area. Numbers indicate the
three study sites: Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, Socorro County, New Mexico
(1); Thomson Causeway Recreation Area, Carroll County, Illinois (2); and Tamarac National
Wildlife Refuge, Becker County, Minnesota (3).
3
2
1
Appendix 2. Years of data collection for five parameters in three wild populations of western
painted turtles (Chrysemys picta bellii). All data from the Minnesota site were collected in 2012.
The Illinois site has been the subject of a long-term study of painted turtle nesting ecology (e.g.,
Schwanz et al 2009; Warner, Jorgensen and Janzen 2010), and in the present study we include
data on nest-site choice, incubation regime, and offspring sex ratio only from nests that survived
(i.e., were not depredated and did not drown due to flooding of the Mississippi River) during
2006 – 2011. Adult sex ratio for the Illinois site was determined from trapping records in 2011.
At the New Mexico site, nest-site choice, incubation regime, offspring sex ratio, and adult sex
ratio data were collected in 2010 and 2011. Data on thermal sensitivity for the Illinois and New
Mexico populations were determined by C.M.-Z. (Morjan 2002, or C.M-Z.’s PhD Dissertation).
New Mexico
Illinois
Minnesota
maternal nest-site choice
2010-2011
2006-2011
2012
nest incubation regime
2010-2011
2006-2011
2012
embryonic thermal sensitivity
1998; 2000
1998; 2000
2012
resultant offspring sex ratio
2010-2011
2006-2011
2012
2011
2011
2012
adult population sex ratio
Schwanz, L.E., Bowden, R.M., Spencer, R.-J. and Janzen, F.J. (2009) Nesting ecology and
offspring recruitment in a long-lived turtle. Ecology, 90, 1709.
Warner, D.A., Jorgensen, C.F. and Janzen, F.J. (2010) Maternal and abiotic effects on egg
mortality and hatchling size of turtles: temporal variation in selection over seven years.
Functional Ecology, 24, 857-866.
Appendix 3. Trap-hours in May and June for three types of aquatic turtle traps used in assessing
adult sex ratio of wild populations of western painted turtles (Chrysemys picta bellii) at Bosque
del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, Socorro County, New Mexico (2011); Thomson
Causeway Recreation Area, Carroll County, Illinois (2011); and Tamarac National Wildlife
Refuge, Becker County, Minnesota (2012). All traps were checked twice daily, and fresh bait
was applied every other day. Tinned sardines in oil, carp heads, and whole-kernel corn were
used as bait in hoopnet and lobster traps.
New Mexico
Illinois
Minnesota
bait trap (hoop net or lobster trap)
76
341
168
basking trap (unbaited)
192
(not used)
251
(not used)
62
(not used)
268
403
419
fyke net (unbaited)
total trap-hours
Appendix 4. Source and collection year of western painted turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii)
clutches used in controlled laboratory experiment to determine pivotal temperatures in three wild
populations at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, Socorro County, New Mexico;
Thomson Causeway Recreation Area, Carroll County, Illinois; and Tamarac National Wildlife
Refuge, Becker County, Minnesota. “Nests” refer to eggs collected from freshly-laid natural
nests. “Females” refer to gravid females induced to oviposit eggs via subcutaneous injection of
0.5 mL of 20 μ/mL oxytocin in the upper hind limb. Females were then placed in individual
buckets containing lukewarm water at a depth of 15 cm over 3 x 3 cm poultry wire, and eggs
were collected after falling through the wire mesh. Following collection from either nests or
gravid females, all eggs were packed in moist sand in coolers and transported to Iowa State
University within 7 days of collection.
1998*
2000*
2012
New Mexico
Illinois
Minnesota
--
12 nests
--
4 females
--
--
3 nests
9 nests
--
12 females
11 females
--
--
--
11 nests
--
--
--
Also see Morjan 2002.
Appendix 5. Assigned and actual temperatures (oC) in incubators used in laboratory experiment
determining pivotal temperature of three populations of western painted turtles ((Chrysemys
picta bellii). Each incubator contained a temperature logger (HOBO® XT, 1998 and 2000; or
iButton, Embedded Data Systems, 2012) that recorded hourly temperatures throughout the
incubation period. Actual incubation temperatures within each incubator were determined by
calculating the mean of temperatures taken every ca. 15 min for at least one week (also see
Morjan 2002). Standard deviations for the New Mexico and Illinois incubators were <0.2oC for
all incubators except for the incubator set at 28.0oC, which was <0.3oC (Morjan 2002). Standard
deviations for the Minnesota incubators were <0.4oC for all incubators. Actual temperatures
were used in calculations of each population’s pivotal temperature.
Assigned temp
Actual temp, New Mexico and
Actual temp, Minnesota eggs
Illinois eggs (1998 and 2000)
(2012)
27.0
--
24.7
27.5
27.2
26.1
28.0
27.7
26.5
28.5
28.3
27.1
29.0
28.4
28.4
29.5
29.9
29.4