Orientarium Zoo Łódź is helping European pond turtles!
An innovative project led by Orientarium Zoo Łódź and its partners will contribute to the restoration of the European pond turtle population in the Łódź region.
The European pond turtle is the only turtle species that occurs naturally in Poland and is the rarest Polish reptile. As early as 1935, it was placed under strict protection and included in the Polish Red Data Book of Animals in the category of “Critically Endangered.” Since the 1990s, there have been no records of turtles belonging to the native Polish genetic line in the Łódź Voivodeship; thus, the species is considered extinct in this area.
That is why Orientarium Zoo Łódź, as part of its mission to save endangered species, has taken on the coordination of a program to reintroduce European pond turtles into the Łódź region,” says Magdalena Janiszewska, the project coordinator from Orientarium Zoo Łódź. “
At the turn of September and October 2024, zoo staff and representatives of the University of Łódź brought the first batch of this year’s turtles from the Polesie National Park, where they hatched from eggs. Over the next three years, a total of 150 turtles will be acquired, and the young will be raised in a special aviary on the zoo grounds, under environmental conditions such as varying water and ambient temperatures, changing sunlight exposure with natural UVB. The only difference compared to the natural environment will be the absence of predators. Under these conditions, the animals will grow large enough to be safely released from their ‘foster home’ into designated sites in the Łódź Voivodeship,” adds Ms. Magdalena.
The Orientarium Zoo Łódź Project – Unique in Poland
The Orientarium Zoo Łódź project is innovative—for the first time in Poland, turtles intended for reintroduction will be provided with conditions identical to those found in the wild. Until now, institutions involved in restoring this species have kept young animals in heated rooms, without allowing them to undergo the winter hibernation necessary for their physiology. In contrast, Łódź’s turtles, like all their wild relatives, will spend the winter at the bottom of a water reservoir, hibernating among underwater vegetation.
“Today, Orientarium Zoo Łódź signed a long-term cooperation agreement with institutions involved in nature conservation in our region: the University of Łódź, the Regional Directorate for Environmental Protection in Łódź, the Regional Directorate of State Forests in Łódź, and the Łódź Voivodeship Landscape Parks Complex,” says Łukasz Goss, president of Orientarium Zoo Łódź. “Thanks to future joint activities, it will be possible to conduct active species protection, including monitoring that will show us how the turtles are coping in their natural environment,” he adds.
European pond turtles spend most of their lives in water—in stagnant water bodies, ponds, and slowly flowing, overgrown streams. They come ashore mainly to bask in the sun or for reproduction. These are elusive animals: thanks to their camouflage coloration, they are experts at blending into their surroundings. They can live up to 120 years, though unfortunately, in the wild, many do not survive their first three years. It is estimated that only about 1% of young turtles escape predation. Hatchlings are tiny (about 3 cm in width) and have soft shells, making them easy prey for predators. Young turtles are hunted by animals such as foxes, raccoon dogs, otters, wild boars, badgers, as well as some water birds and birds of prey.
Every year on May 23rd, we celebrate World Turtle Day, which aims to raise public awareness of the need to protect all turtle species.
