With this week being #ScienceLiteracyWeek, did you know your Toronto Zoo relies on evidence-based science to support our field conservation programs? We are excited to share that earlier this year, new research from our Field Conservation team and collaborators was published in the Journal of Wildlife Management 🐢 In this study, long-term population modeling was used to evaluate whether the Blanding’s turtle population in Rouge National Urban Park is likely to persist long-term, and to test how continued head-starting efforts could support population recovery and long-term sustainability. Some key findings were: 🐢 Continued head-starting could support reaching a sustainable population size within the next 20 years 🐢 Juvenile turtle survival is predicted to have the greatest influence on population growth and extinction risk 🐢 Ongoing management actions that reduce juvenile mortality and support recruitment are critical for recovery success Aligning with our commitmen...