What We Do
We treat and rehabilitate injured turtles and their allies. The focus is on turtles but we also handle snakes, lizards, frogs, toads and salamanders. So herpetofauna. The objective is returning healthy herps back to their native environment. A supplemental activity is finding newly laid turtle nests that can be protected from predators giving them the best chance to grow up to be an adult.
The order of Chelonians, aka Testudines, is the most endangered of any major vertebrate group. Ontario has 8 species of turtles, and they are all threatened in some way. Two of the biggest contributors to their threatened status are nest predation and road injury or mortality. Turtles can live to be anywhere from 20 to 70 years old. And they mature relatively late so saving an adult turtle is very important to their survival. Of course, helping their eggs to hatch is an important beginning.
A Map Turtle laying her eggs.
Minutes after she finished, we put the nest protector over top. There is a huge amount of nest predation and the eggs would probably not have survived the night
A Painted turtle that has been run over. It needs hydration, pain medication, and shell repair.
About Myself
My name is Roger. I retired about 5 years ago and since then I have been volunteering with wildlife and ecological organizations including Safewings, Holly's Haven, Rideau Valley Wildlife Sanctuary and the Ottawa Riverkeeper. I am also on the board of directors of the Macnamara Field Naturalists' Club.
A couple years ago I decided I would work towards being authorized by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry in Ontario. as a Wildlife Custodian. I am now authorized to provide rehabilitation care to 'herps' - reptiles & amphibians. My current focus is on turtles, as you can see from the website, in Renfrew County and the western side of Ottawa.
Roger Magoon
MNRF Authorization Number PEMB-2023-FWCA- 00022