Why Are So Many Turtles Crossing the Road Right Now?

You’ve probably seen it. A turtle halfway across the road. Cars swerving. Some don’t. The shell cracked, body still. And you wonder—why the hell are they even crossing?

Because they have no choice.

This time of year, something deep inside them wakes up. When the air warms and the sun starts burning through the morning fog, they feel it. A switch flips. It’s nesting time.

The females leave the water they’ve known all year. Their body tells them it’s time to find land, dig, and bury the future. Eggs. Life. Survival. And it doesn’t matter if a six-lane highway stands in their way—they still go. Because that’s what they’ve done for millions of years.

They don’t know about traffic. They don’t care about new roads or speeding trucks. They just follow the same ancient path their kind has followed since before humans existed.

And we’ve made it a death trap.

A tired mama turtle dragging herself across asphalt isn’t just a “cool sight” or a minor inconvenience in traffic. It’s a creature risking everything to give her babies a chance.

If you ever see one, don’t look away. Help if it’s safe. Pick her up gently—only if she’s not a snapper—and place her on the side she was heading to. Never turn her around. Never move her elsewhere. She’s got a purpose, and that direction is not random.

If she panics and dumps her water (yeah, turtles carry water to soften the dirt for their nest), she has to crawl all the way back, refill, and do it again. That’s if she makes it back alive.

And if she digs in your garden or yard—please don’t scare her off. Let her finish. You can protect the nest afterward with some mesh or a flat pan and a heavy rock. After a couple of weeks, the scent fades and predators won’t sniff it out as easily.

These aren’t just reptiles. They’re survivors. Warriors from another time who keep trying to live in a world that no longer makes room for them.

They’re not just crossing the road.

They’re crossing a battlefield. And most of the time, we don’t even slow down.