Turtles are in decline worldwide, and the magnitude and recent acceleration of population declines requires immediate action to inform conservation and management plans. Long‐term studies of population trends and characteristics covering multiple populations across a range of environmental contexts are needed to guide the most effective management decisions, yet such studies are uncommon. Eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina) populations have declined and require conservation action throughout much of their range. We assessed sources of variation and temporal trends in T. c. carolina population characteristics from 39 sites spanning four ecoregions in North Carolina using capture–mark–recapture. Surprisingly, there was no evidence of population decline at any site over a ten‐year period (2008–2017). Population densities ranged from 0.2 to 6.0 turtles per hectare, decreasing with more urban development and increasing with more wetland habitats in the surrounding landscape. Populations varied in demographic structure but had similar sex ratios and more adults than immature turtles in each ecoregion even after adjusting for variation in encounter probability among groups and body sizes. Survivorship was similar among life stages and sexes and only weakly related to body size. After adjusting for emigration, annual survival probability ranged from 90.7% to 96.8% for the various demographic groups and body sizes. Growth rates decreased with increasing body size, with rates ranging from approximately 15‐mm carapace length per year in the smallest individuals to near zero in the largest individuals. No aspect of population demographic structure or vital rates was related to surrounding landscape context. Population trends and characteristics were consistent among ecoregions, suggesting no need for region‐specific conservation or management with respect to the population characteristics examined. However, given the high site‐specific variability in nearly all estimated parameters, managers would benefit from targeting local threats such as urban land development and wetland destruction to ensure local population viability. The population characteristics reported here can serve as a useful baseline to compare population trends at these sites as monitoring continues. Our approach could be a useful model for other regions to follow in developing monitoring programs for this and other imperiled turtles.

中文翻译：

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北卡罗莱纳州东部盒龟的全州人口特征和长期趋势

全世界的海龟数量都在下降，人口下降的幅度和最近的加速趋势要求立即采取行动，以告知保护和管理计划。需要进行长期的人口趋势和特征研究以涵盖最广泛的环境背景，以指导最有效的管理决策，但是这种研究并不常见。东部箱龟（Terrapene carolina carolina）的种群数量有所下降，并且在其大部分范围内都需要采取保护行动。我们评估了T. c。的变化和时间趋势的来源。卡罗莱纳州利用捕获-标记-捕获技术，从跨越北卡罗来纳州四个生态区域的39个站点获得了种群特征。令人惊讶的是，在十年期间（2008-2017年），没有任何证据表明任何地点的人口减少。人口密度为每公顷0.2至6.0只海龟，随着城市发展的增加而降低，并随着周围景观中更多的湿地栖息地而增加。各个种群的人口结构均发生变化，但即使在调整了群体和体型之间的相遇概率差异之后，每个生态区域中的性别比也比未成熟的海龟多。生命阶段和性别之间的存活率相似，但与体型之间的关系很小。在调整了移民之后，各种人口群体和体型的年生存概率在90.7％至96.8％之间。生长速度随着体型的增加而降低，最小个体的年甲壳长约15mm，最大个体的近乎零。人口统计结构或生命率的任何方面都与周围的景观环境无关。生态区域之间的人口趋势和特征是一致的，这表明就所研究的人口特征而言，无需针对特定区域进行保护或管理。但是，鉴于几乎所有估计参数中特定于地点的差异都很大，管理人员将从针对当地威胁（例如城市土地开发和湿地破坏）中受益，以确保当地人口的生存能力。随着监测的继续，此处报告的人口特征可以作为比较这些地点的人口趋势的有用基准。我们的方法可能会成为其他地区遵循的针对该海龟和其他海龟开发监测程序的有用模型。