MONTAGUE — Turtle crossing season is in full swing, and new signs along Montague City Road are urging drivers to take it slow and steady, so the turtles can win their race.

The Montague Planning Department, in collaboration with Sheffield Elementary School, RiverCulture, and the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, helped bring a resident’s idea for signs along popular turtle crossing locations on Montague City Road to fruition.

On May 1, Planning Director Maureen Pollock went out to the mile-long stretch of road to place turtle crossing signs that Sheffield Elementary School second graders designed with guidance from their teachers and Great Falls Discovery Center Visitor Services Supervisor Janel Nockleby.

In late May 2024, Montague business owner Melissa Winters went to the Selectboard to express concern over the number of turtles being struck along Montague City Road. She said that she’s helped turtles cross that section of the road before, and she noticed several dead turtles on the right side of the road near the low ditch.

To try to raise awareness about the issue, she visited the Selectboard to share her concerns, which were then passed along to the Conservation Commission.

Pollock said in preparation for this year’s turtle crossing season, she wanted to find a collaborative community effort to raise awareness based on Winters’ suggestion.

“I saw this as an opportunity to perhaps collaborate with the Sheffield Elementary School as well as our Discovery Center, to see if there’s any sort of collaborative community initiative ... and bring awareness to this,” she said. “Everyone was super excited about this idea.”

In March, Pollock began working with Winters to identify where the turtles cross, and Nockleby visited three second grade classrooms to teach the students about turtles. Then, the students drew their own turtles for the signs. Second grade teachers Susan Pelis, Katie Wheeler and Rebecca Rice were part of this educational outreach along with visual art teacher Jocelyn Castro-Santos and Principal Kerry Heathwaite.

Next, Pollock worked with RiverCulture Director Suzanne LoManto to design the signs based on the students’ drawings, which were digitized and printed.

The signs include 10 unique turtle-based designs that line the right side of Montague City Road traveling north, and another set of signs urging drivers to slow down on the left side. The crossing points that were identified are between 212 and 222 Montague City Road.

This season is important for aquatic turtles like the eastern painted turtle and American snapping turtle, who leave their aquatic habitats to find nesting sites to lay eggs. Land turtles like the eastern box turtle and semi-aquatic box turtle also cross roads for the same purpose.

There are wetlands on either side of Montague City Road, and the turtles cross from east to west toward the Connecticut River. With turtles being slow-moving, it puts them at risk of being struck and killed by vehicles.

“There were oftentimes turtles on the side of the road, waiting, because before they get into the road, if you come near them, they’ll freeze,” Winters said. “But once they start across, then that’s obviously where they get into trouble, and there were a lot of the small ones that had been crushed.”

Now that there are posted signs along the roadway to alert drivers, Winters shared that it was nice to see the initiative that was brought to the town come to fruition, especially with the educational element of the project in collaboration with the school.

“It definitely is something that helps also to grow awareness, because you’re bringing it into the classroom and teaching the kids that this is an area that they should be concerned about, and that they should tell their parents,” Winters said. “I feel like it broadens the scope of the messaging as well.”

To offer more guidance, Pollock created a page on Montague’s town website that includes advice and information about turtle crossing, including the do’s and don’ts of helping turtles cross the road.

Once the crossing season is over, Pollock said she plans to store the signs at Montague Town Hall for future use. With this being just one of the potential amphibious crossing zones in Montague, she said this could be a project that expands to other areas.

“The turtle crossing season reminds us that small actions — like slowing down and being vigilant — can make a big difference,” Pollock said. “By collaborating with schools, conservation and public art partners, and residents, we are fostering a culture of stewardship and awareness.”

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.