Soccer moms and Little League dads aren't the only ones living the good life in the 'burbs. Eastern long-necked turtles in the Australian suburbs are living fat and happy, according to new research in the journal Biological Conservation. The finding came as a surprise to the research team. According to BBC News:
"We expected suburban turtles to move around less than those on the nature reserves in response to the many threats that suburban turtles could encounter, but we found the opposite," says Dr John Roe, a member of the research team from the Institute for Applied Ecology at the University of Canberra, Australia. "Suburban turtles traveled longer distances and occupied home ranges nearly three times larger than turtles in the nature reserves."
Seems like suburbanites are forcing McMansions and longer commutes on turtles now too. Related Content: Discoblog: Band of Turtles Takes Over JFK Tarmac, Delays Flights Discoblog: Multibillion Ant “Megacolony” Set to Take Over the Globe Discoblog: Bees on a Plane! 10,000 Bees Swarm an Airplane Wing in Massachusetts
Image: flickr / reggie35
