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GRATEFUL FOR THE SUPPORT FROM THE COMMUNITY. WELL, IT WAS AN EXCITING DAY FOR ZOOKEEPERS AND NATURAL RESOURCE WORKERS. DOZENS OF BLANDING’S TURTLE HATCHLINGS WERE RELEASED INTO THE WILD THIS MORNING. ����vlog OLIVIA TYLER WAS THERE TO WATCH THE BIG MOMENT TODAY, A THREE YEAR COLLABORATIVE PROJECT IS COMING TO AN END. 56 BLANDING’S TURTLES ARE BEING LET OUT INTO THEIR NATURAL HABITAT HERE IN CENTRAL IOWA FOR THE FIRST TIME. THE RELEASE WAS PART OF A PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE IOWA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES, THE BLANK PARK ZOO AND IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY. THE BABY TURTLES WERE BORN ABOUT A YEAR AGO FROM OTHER ADULT BLANDING’S TURTLES THAT THE PARTNERSHIP FOUND IN IOWA WETLANDS. EACH OF THE HATCHLINGS NOW CARRY A TRANSMITTER THAT OFFICIALS SAY WILL HELP PROVIDE DATA ON THE MOVEMENTS OF BLANDING’S TURTLES. THEY’RE HOPING TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SPECIES, WHICH IS CONSIDERED THREATENED. THE ZOO HAS KEPT THEM OVER THE WINTER FOR US, AND THEY’VE KEPT THEM AWAKE INSTEAD OF ALLOWING THEM TO GO TO SLEEP FOR THE WINTER. SO THEY’VE GROWN BIGGER THAN THEY WOULD IN THE WILD BECAUSE THEY’RE BIGGER. IT WILL BE HARDER FOR SOME OF THEIR NATURAL PREDATORS TO SWALLOW THEM WHOLE. PEOPLE DON’T KNOW A LOT ABOUT THEM. IOWANS DON’T KNOW THEY’RE HERE. THEY’RE SUPER COOL. THEY’RE SUPER ECOLOGICALLY IMPORTANT. SO I’M DEFINITELY A BIT NERVOUS. I HOPE THAT THEY DO REALLY WELL OUT THERE. LANG AND HER FELLOW TECHNICIANS WILL BE OUT HERE EVERY DAY UNTIL JULY, USING THE TAGS THEY PUT ON THE TURTLES TO CHECK ON THEM AND TRACK THEIR DATA IN CENTRAL IOWA, OLIVI