It was another good year for Barrington's Diamondback terrapin population.

This year, volunteers reported that 458 terrapin hatchlings were released (plus two more that survived the winter in the care of Barrington's Amy O'Donnell). That's an increase over the past two years — in 2014, approximately 400 terrapins hatched and in 2013, there were 425 hatchlings.

"Though there were quite a few unfertilized eggs, only one nest had maggots in the eggs — those are being kept for URI professor, Nancy Karraker, to attempt to identify," stated a report on the terrapins. "Hatchlings were released from August 15 till September 6."

Volunteers said that there was very little scavenging of the terrapin nests on Nockum Hill — the wooded area in the northern part of Hundred Acre Cove is the nesting area for the terrapins.

"The only scavengers seen were coyotes," stated the report. "Other animals included white-tailed deer, wild turkeys, one Great-horned owl, a bat and killdeer. It appears that the coyotes have entirely replaced the raccoons and skunks that we recorded in the 1990s and early 2000s. No terrapin that we know of was killed, though Laura Barton helped one that was crossing the Wampanoag Trail at the location of the bus shelter…"

This was the 26th year where volunteers have assisted in the terrapin hatch and recorded information about the animals. Their work starts in the late spring when the first nesting sites are observed. The volunteers help protect the nest by placing metal cage excluders over the tops of them.

"There was again increased nesting on the point (at Nockum Hill), likely due to the removed oak trees in 2014," stated the report. "Of concern is the continuing erosion of the marsh and possible reduction of food supply."

Volunteers, including longtime resident and conservationist Charlotte Sornborger, approximate the male/female/juvenile population of terrapins in Hundred Acre Cove to be 588.

Other Diamondback terrapin nesting sites have been recorded in other parts of the East Bay.

"Other locations of terrapin sightings include one female nesting at the end of Riverview Drive north of the White Church Bridge, one female on the shore at Colt State Park, and many seen at various locations in the Palmer River by Meghan Beatty, Peter Paton, Bill Gauntlett and Butch Lombardi," stated the report. "A few have suggested the possibility that some terrapin from the cove migrate to the Palmer River in summer in search of a better food supply. It would be interesting to capture and possibly identify some of the terrapin in the Palmer – a possible graduate student project."