 
The New York Turtle and Tortoise Society presents
Seminar 2025
Saturday, December 13, 2025
Check-in 9:30 a.m.; Sessions 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
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Approach from the north on Alexander Street
to the Beczak Environmental Education Center
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Seminar 2025 was held at the Beczak Environmental Education Center in Yonkers, New York — an easy drive up from the city or down from points in Westchester County and north with ample parking is available.
See Driving Directions to Beczak (PDF). Or see Alternative Directions (PDF). It is also just two blocks north of the Yonkers Metro North (Hudson River Line) station (see map and train schedules (PDF)).
The full-day event featured three in-depth presentations by prominent herpetologists and researchers. Video of this event will be online soon.
See video recordings of this event. |
Scheduled Program
Anthony Pierlioni |
Anthony Pierlioni
Vice President & Senior Director, the TurtleRoom
“The Great American Turtle Chase—Exploring
the Incredible Biodiversity of the Southern United States”
Conservationists often discuss places around the world that they would like to visit in search of the animals they love. Instead of traveling abroad, three friends from the Northeast choose to start with the incredible biodiversity of the southern United States. The result brings them on the most incredible journey of their lives.
In their travels, they encounter every type of swamp, bog, river, stream, bayou, forest, prairie, desert, and roadside ditch that the southern US has to offer. Being fully immersed in these spaces, it becomes apparent that humans have altered every single wild space, even national forests.
Searching for wild animals and the places they call home can be a sobering activity, but there is much to be optimistic about. The next generation of wildlife warriors is alive and well, and we see that
progress can be made through collaboration and friendship.
Anthony Pierlioni has written five books on turtles and veterinary leadership and speaks internationally on these subjects. A turtle conservationist, Anthony is the Vice President of theTurtleRoom, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that supports conservation around the world and educates the public about the plight of turtles. Follow his turtle-related adventures on the jusTURTLES YouTube channel. (QR Code Attached — people can use their phone cameras to go right to the site.)
Mike Graziano |
Michael P. Graziano
Assistant Professor of Biology, University of Hartford
“Ecology of Spotted Turtles (Clemmys guttata) in New England: Observations Nestled Within the Data”
When conducting research on any system or organism, there are multitudes of observations that simply cannot be incorporated into a paper. This does not mean these observations are unimportant or lack value. Quite the contrary, these observations may represent valuable data and insight into a species. In this presentation, I will share a series of unique observations captured on film of spotted turtles in the wild over the course of fieldwork at various locations and provide biological hypotheses to explain these behaviors.
Dr. Michael Graziano earned his Ph.D. in ecology from Ohio State University, studying how widespread shifts in dominant plant communities due to climate change, altered disturbance regimes, and that invasive species can trickle down into shifts within herpetological communities. While his research interests are primarily at the community to landscape scale, he has had a particular fondness for turtles since childhood and has used any opportunity to incorporate them into his own research. Since moving to New England from the Midwest, he has focused much of his attention on spotted turtles across urban-rural gradients and strives to continue to add to the ecology and conservation of this species.
Ari Taub
Professional filmmaker and ecological researcher
Premier Showing:
The Quiet Battle to Save the Blanding’s Turtle of New York
Watch trailer of the film on the home page.
Ari also welcomes two scientists from the film: Angelina Ross, Wildlife Biologist, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and Glenn Johnson, Professor & Chair, Department of Biology, SUNY College at Potsdam.
Ari premiered the first film of his documentary series “Turtles of North America,” entitled The Last Spotted Turtles of New England, for the Society on February 23, 2025. We are pleased that he will present the second film of that series at our Seminar meeting today.
Ari Taub has been working in the film industry for over 30 years. His feature films and shorts have been screened around the world, and he has won numerous awards. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Film and Television from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. His work has been covered by Roger Ebert, the Los Angeles Times, and the Hollywood Reporter. Ari has received over fifty awards for the films he has directed, and he has worked with prominent film stars, including Harrison Ford, Dudley Moore, Sandra Bernhard, Edward Furlong, and Eric Roberts.
Ari has had an interest in ecology and turtles since he was a kid. He is a long-standing member of the NYTTS and is proud to present his turtle work here.
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