FT. MONROE, Va.— Conservation groups today filed a petition asking the Virginia Marine Resources Commission to adopt regulations that would protect diamondback terrapins from drowning in blue crab pots.

Diamondback terrapins, found along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts from Massachusetts to Texas, are the only turtles in the world that live exclusively in coastal estuaries. These estuaries are also home to blue crabs, which are trapped in crab pots. Crab pots trap and drown imperiled diamondback terrapins, who have suffered population declines of 75% across most of their range in the past 50 years.

“Diamondback terrapins are drowning in blue crab pots every day, even though there’s a simple, low cost way to prevent this ongoing tragedy, so we need action,” said Tara Zuardo, a senior wildlife advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “It’s time for Virginia to follow other states and take basic steps to require that crab traps don’t kill even more of these imperiled turtles.”

Today’s petition, filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, Virginia Herpetological Society, Wild Virginia and biologist Willem M. Roosenburg, Ph.D., asked the state to require bycatch reduction devices on all licensed recreational and commercial blue crab pots in near-shore waters where terrapins are frequently found. When installed on crab pot entrance funnels, these small and inexpensive devices prevent most terrapins from entering the pot, while having little to no effect on crab haul.

Experts agree that blue crab pots pose the greatest threat to diamondback terrapins, with 60,000 to 80,000 killed in active and abandoned crab traps each year. Baited blue crab pots are known to trap and drown terrapins, while fleets of traps are capable of steadily killing turtles until a population cannot sustain itself. Abandoned or lost traps — called ghost pots — can capture terrapins by the dozen.

New York and New Jersey already require bycatch reduction devices on recreational and commercial pots. Delaware, Florida, and Maryland require the devices on recreational pots.

Under state law, the commission must respond to the petition in the Virginia Register of Regulations within 14 days.

In September 2024 the Center for Biological Diversity and 20 partner organizations petitioned NOAA Fisheries to protect diamondback terrapins as endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

Background

Diamondback terrapins are known for their stunning diamond-patterned shells and speckled skin. Spending most of their lives in nearshore habitat, they live in coastal marshes, tidal creeks, mangroves, and other estuarine habitats, where they primarily feed on snails, clams, mussels and small crabs. Terrapins are potentially a keystone species in salt marshes and mangroves, helping to maintain the health of those ecosystems.