Impacts of Anthropogenic Structures on Predation of Painted Turtle (Chrysemys picta) Nests

Anthropogenic factors can negatively impact wildlife populations, but deleterious effects may not be universal. We investigated the relationship between nest predation and spatial proximity to anthropogenic structures (campsites, trash bins, etc.) for 1375 painted turtle (Chrysemys picta) nests over 6 years for a population on the Mississippi River, Illinois. Although varying among years, the probability of nest predation increased with greater distance from anthropogenic structures over all years combined and did not differ between supplemental food attractant structures (e.g., fish cleaning table) and nonsupplemental food attractant structures (e.g., horseshoe pits).