Candia is home to many different wildlife and plant species.
This page contains information about some of the more rare
species found in our area.
Description: The Blanding's turtle is a medium
sized turtle with an average shell length of approximately
7-9 inches and a maximum length of 10 inches. A distinguishing
feature of this turtle is the bright yellow chin and throat.
The carapace, or upper shell, is domed, but slightly flattened
along the midline, and is oblong when viewed from above. The
carapace is speckled with numerous yellow or light-colored
flecks or streaks on a dark background. The plastron, or lower
shell, is yellow with dark blotches symmetrically arranged.
The head and legs are dark, and usually speckled or mottled
with yellow. The Blanding's turtle is also called the "semi-box"
turtle, for although the plastron is hinged, the plastral lobes
do not shut as tight as the box turtle's.
Life History: Mating probably occurs in
April and early May with nesting beginning in early June
and lasting throughout the month. The clutch size varies
from region to region. The Blanding's is a timid turtle and
may plunge into water and remain on the bottom for hours
when alarmed. If away from water, the turtle will close itself
up within its shell. It is very gentle and rarely attempts
to bite. It is very agile and a good swimmer. The Blanding's
turtle overwinters under or near water, in mud or under vegetation
or debris. During the nesting season, a female Blanding's
turtle may be found more than a kilometer from where it hibernated.
It is omnivorous, eating crustaceans and other invertebrates,
fish, plants, carrion and vegetable debris. It is capable
of catching live fish. Blanding's turtles take 18-22 years
to reach sexual maturity and may live to be 70 years old.
Habitat Associations: Variety of wetland
systems including rivers, beaver flowages and isolate pools.
Large marshes with blueberry and button bush cover may be
preferred. Nests in natural areas with loose soil such as
beaver lodges, lakeshore beaches and soil-filled cracks in
bedrock and in sandy substrates created by human activity
such as gravel pits and roadside edges.
Protection Strategy: The goal is to increase
survival by reducing the risks created by people. The first
line of defense is to find relatively pristine areas that
provide quality habitat where these species are found and
take measures to protect them so these turtles can continue
to thrive there. The second strategy, in areas where these
turtles exist but development has created increased vulnerability,
is to attempt to reduce the risks they encounter by increasing
people’s awareness.
- Maintain roadless areas especially in association with
wetland complexes. Avoid upgrading or adding road systems
that will bisect wetland complexes.
- If a road is built over a wetland or stream, build a
bridge instead of installing a culvert.
- Maintain a buffer around streams and wetlands, Provide
natural buffers around stream and river systems where they
connect wetland complexes.
- Avoid wetland fragmentation. Do not isolate wetlands
by surrounding them with development. Maintain connections
to other wetlands and maintain passage corridors for turtle
travel between wetland habitats. Maintain passage corridors
between wetlands and nesting areas.
- Protect sandy nesting areas from recreational use (i.e,
walking, biking). Don’t re-vegetate gravel pits, borrow
pits or gravel woods roads.
- Encourage a public education campaign. Support and publicize
collection regulations. Educate students on the community
about the importance of leaving turtles in the wild and
the legal protection provided to them by state law.
- Promote measures that discourage an abundance of turtle
predators such as raccoons and skunks. Establish and enforce
leash laws for dogs and cats to avios predation.
- Maintain undisturbed passage areas between wetlands
and nearby vernal pools.
- Protect associated vernal pools and surrounding habitat
for vernal pool breeders.
© Harold Lindstrom |
Description: Referred to as the "spirit of
northern waters", the common loon is recognized as a symbol
of unspoiled wilderness. In breeding plumage, this water bird
is black-headed with a heavy, black, dagger-like bill, dark
red eyes, a black collar, a white necklace, prominent white
checks on the back, and white underparts. In non-breeding plumage,
the body is essentially grayish above and whitish below with
varying amounts of white showing on the side of the head. Dark
traces of the collar are often visible. In the winter, the
bill is lighter and of a grayish hue. Juveniles are similar
to adults in winter plumage, but have more prominent barring
across the back. A distinctive feature of the loon is its eerie,
yodel-like call that can be heard on northern lakes where nesting
occurs and on wintering areas in late winter and early spring.
Life History: Returning to the same breeding
grounds year after year, common loons are believed to mate
for life. Upon their return, the pair renews their bond with
short displays, including synchronized swimming, head posturing
and diving. The nest is built within a few feet of the water's
edge by both the male and female. A clutch of two eggs is
laid sometime between mid-May and June. The young hatch after
an incubation period of 26-31 days and begin to swim almost
at once. Within 24 hours, they are moved by the parents to
a nursery area away from the nest. In 2-3 weeks, the young
are able to make short dives and catch small fish. Fledging
occurs in 11-13 weeks. Juveniles may spend several years
in oceanic wintering areas before returning inland to breed.
The loon's diet consists almost entirely of fish.
Habitat Associations: Breeds on lakes and
ponds. Nests are built on islands, lakeshores and marshes
or bogs. Winters on the ocean from Maine to Florida, sometimes
congregating on inland lakes before migrating.
Protection Strategy:
- Maintain water quality through shoreline buffer protection
and other measures.
- Support efforts to prevent disturbance at nest sites.
- Promote public awareness of the change in regulations
limiting the use of lead sinkers.
- Contact the Loon Preservation Committee for more detailed
information on protecting individual nest sites and maintaining
water levels conducive to successful loon nesting on dam-controlled
water bodies.
© Brian E. Small |
Description: The great blue heron is the largest
heron in North America. It stands 3-4 feet tall and has a wingspan
of almost 6 feet. It has blue-gray feathers on most of its
body and a plume of feathers on its chest and back. It has
a long, pointed yellow bill and long legs. Adults have white
on the top of their heads and long black plumes above their
eyes.
Life History: The female great blue heron
lays 3-7 eggs on a shallow platform made of sticks and twigs
and lined with soft material. The nest is usually in a tall
tree, but it may be built in the reeds or on a cliff edge.
The eggs hatch in about a month and the chicks will fledge
when they are about two months old. Great blue herons nest
in colonies. They usually nest in the same spot from year
to year. They may even use the same nest. The great blue
heron migrates in the fall, although some stay in the northern
part of their range. The great blue heron usually tucks its
head into an S-shape when it is resting and flying.
Habitat Associations: Great blue herons
usually nest in colonies although single nests are occasionally
found. Rookeries may be as large as several hundred nests,
but the largest in New Hampshire contains about 125 nests
and the average colony is about 15 nests. Preferred nesting
sites are remote islands or inaccessible swamps. Nests in
New Hampshire are most commonly places in the upper limbs
of dead trees, often white pine and red maple, in active
beaver ponds.
Protection Strategy: Rookeries are usually
returned to year after year, although sites are occasionally
abandoned. Human disturbance during breeding is one cause
of abandonment. Protection efforts should include maintaining
a visual buffer between nests and houses or other human activity.
This can be achieved by natural land formations or obstructions
such as trees. The barrier must be effective when the leaves
are off the trees because breeding activity begins before
leaves appear. Educate those near nesting sites regarding
the sensitivity of herons to disturbance. Limit visitation
close to the colonies from March through at least 1 June.
If herons are nesting in active beaver ponds, consider protecting
the entire wetlands complex. Beavers abandon a pond after
their food has run out and move nearby, creating a variety
of ponds in various stages of flooding. This natural succession
provides quality nesting and feeding habitat for great blue
herons. By protecting the wetland complex, it allows enough
space for this natural beaver cycle to take place. In addition
to protection of rookeries, the protection of shorelines,
riparian areas and both coastal and inland wetlands is critical
to maintaining feeding areas for great blue herons, whose
primary food is fish.
Waldsteinia fragarioides
© Janet Novak |
A low-growing perennial herb having strawberrylike leaves,
yellow flowers and small, dry, inedible fruit.
- Family: Rose (Rosaceae)
- Habitat: woods, clearings
- Height: 3-8 inches
- Flower size: 1/2 to 3/4 inch across
- Flower color: yellow
- Flowering time: April to June
- Origin: native
Hottonia inflata
© Eleanor Saulys |
Featherfoil is an aquatic plant, with submerged, feathery
leaves and an inflated flower stalk that rises above the
water.
- Family: Primrose (Primulaceae)
- Habitat: shallow water in ponds and slow streams
- Height: 2-6 inches above the surface of the water
- Flower size: 1/8 inch across
- Flower color: white
- Flowering time: May to August
- Origin: native
Desmodium rotundifolium
This plant trails along the ground in dry woodlands and
is characterized by its round leaves; the flowers are pea-like.
Its seedpods are segmented and the hairy seeds are carried
to other locations by sticking to animals.
Iris prismatica
© Janet Novak |
This species looks similar to the larger blueflag. They
can be distinguished by the width of the leaves. Slender
blueflag leaves look almost like grass (they are less than
1/4 inch wide); larger blueflag leaves are a half to one
inch wide.
- Family: Iris (Iridaceae)
- Habitat: marshes (fresh, brackish, or salt), shores,
or meadows along the coast
- Height: 1-3 feet
- Flower size: 2.5 to 4 inches
- Flower color: blue-purple
- Flowering time: May to july
- Origin: native
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