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<span style='font-family:&quot;Segoe UI Historic&quot;, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size:16px;'><font color='#050505' style='font-family:inherit;'>The Bay County Box Turtle Project is a citizen science initiative aimed at the conservation of box turtles and their habitats in neighborhoods of Bay County, Florida. </font></span><div style='font-family:&quot;Avenir Next W01&quot;, &quot;Avenir Next W00&quot;, &quot;Avenir Next&quot;, Avenir, &quot;Helvetica Neue&quot;, sans-serif; font-size:16px;'><font color='#050505' style='font-family:inherit;'><br /></font><div style='font-family:inherit;'><span style='font-family:inherit;'><font color='#050505' style='font-family:inherit;'><span style='font-family:inherit;'>Box turtles, like all residents in Bay County, are adapting to the dramatic changes caused by Hurricane Michael. Box turtles seek shelter in the shaded, brushy cover of wood piles, thick vegetation, and shrubbery- habitat features that have been affected by the storm and its aftermath. We believe that a thriving box turtle population indicates that ample green spaces exist throughout a neighborhood to provide food and shelter, and pathways for turtles and other wildlife. As we clean-up, rebuild, and replant our neighborhoods, we intend to monitor the status of box turtles as a biological indicator of the recovery of the natural elements that make Bay County neighborhoods a unique and special place for all.</span><br /></font></span></div><div style='font-family:inherit;'><div style='font-family:&quot;Segoe UI Historic&quot;, &quot;Segoe UI&quot;, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; margin:0.5em 0px 0px;'><div style='font-family:inherit;'><span style='font-family:inherit;'><font color='#050505' style='font-family:inherit;'><br /></font></span></div><div style='font-family:inherit;'><span style='font-family:inherit;'><font color='#050505' style='font-family:inherit;'>Our Geographic Focus- We are currently tagging turtles and requesting your sighting reports in: The Cove (Panama City), College Point (Lynn Haven), and Lower Grand Lagoon (Panama City Beach).</font></span></div></div></div></div>