Chelonian Epitaph

Editorial Introduction. — This section is devoted to poetry involving turtles, representing either reprinted previously published or new unpublished material. We encourage our readers to submit poetry or songs for consideration, either their own material or work by other authors. Poems may be submitted to Anders G.J. Rhodin, Chelonian Research Foundation, E-mail: RhodinCRF@aol.com.

Our desire is to share with our readers the beauty and wonder of turtles as expressed through the art of the poem or song. In the sense that the relationship between man and turtles is multifaceted, so too is turtle poetry. The poems we publish here will reflect that complexity, from poems of pure admiration for the creatures themselves to others reflecting the utilization of turtles and their products. Some poems will reflect man's use of the turtle for sustenance, others will stress man's need to preserve and protect turtles. Some will deal with our emotional interactions with turtles, others will treat turtles light-heartedly or with seeming disrespect, but all will hopefully help us to better understand both the human and the chelonian condition, and remind us that the turtle holds a sacred place in all our hearts.

Chelonian Epitaph ¹

Sean M. Hartzell

I trod upon last autumn's leaves,

winter's chill still on the breeze.

Into the swamp, I search for spring,

but still too cold, no frogs yet sing.

I look and see a striking sight,

a turtle's shell, protruding, white.

Your carapace, bleached, your upper half,

your memory, your epitaph.

I sit and ponder, as I should,

how many seasons you knew this wood?

While somber feelings fill my heart,

I know that this is nature's part.

A natural death, so odd it seems,

for turtles should be, a more common theme.

Not in a pot, or on the road,

or taken far away from your abode.

And so, I leave your memory here,

and feel renewal, that spring is near.

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Editorial Comment. — I received this poem this spring from Sean Hartzell and found it quietly peaceful and eliciting images of visiting a loved one's grave to pay respects and to remember and honor their life. I asked Sean how he had come to write the poem, and he put it this way: “While I was saddened by the find, I took solace in that the turtle had reached adulthood and appeared to have died of natural causes—a fate not always met by chelonians.” In fact, for turtles in this day and age to live out their full lives naturally in their native habitats is indeed increasingly difficult. Although this box turtle may have died of natural old age, it is also possible that it died from some unidentified environmental threat, such as possibly an epizootic Ranavirus infection, which has been causing increased mortality in box turtle populations in many areas, including Pennsylvania. The turtles in our environments and around the globe are increasingly threatened by numerous stressors, including habitat loss and degradation, unsustainable consumption and exploitation, invasive species, epizootic disease, and genetic pollution. As we monitor their populations and their continuing declines, they become signal indicators for the declining health and adequacy of our remaining natural habitats and their high vulnerability to targeted exploitation.