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Wildlife officials highlight safe turtle crossings

June is a busy time for turtles. This means the Minnesota Wildlife Rehabilitation Center is going to be busy too, taking care of the turtles that have been hit by cars.

ROSEVILLE, Minn. - With another flip of the calendar, the areas near lakes and ponds are becoming increasingly populated with wildlife.

This means it's the start of the busy season for the Minnesota Wildlife Rehabilitation Center.

"Definitely the past couple of weeks we've been getting turtles in pretty much daily," Dr. Leslie Reed said. "Western painted turtles and snapping turtles are the most common turtles are the most common turtles we admit here."

Those victims of vehicles are brought in by people worried about their well-being. When they get into the clinic, the turtles are in varying conditions.

"He came in about a week ago and had a fracture here to the back of his shell," Reed said pointing at a painted turtle's back.

Reed explains that the turtles' love for their home is so strong that they are willing to risk it all, when it comes to laying eggs.

"they go to the same lakes and ponds every year," Reed said. "There are two opportunities that turtles are crossing the roads, two opportunities for them to be hit by cars."

For the driver, Reed says the best thing to do is be vigilant. If you see an injured turtle, she recommends bringing it in right away.

As fascinating as nature can be, the turtles also should be observed from a distance.

"What you'll see is that the turtle has made kind of a big depression in the ground with their hind legs," Reed said. "and they're sitting in this big clump of dirt, they're laying their eggs. Don't disturb them."

If you ever need to hurry an uninjured turtle along, Reed says you should drop them off in the same direction they were headed.

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