Bigger is better: age class‐specific survival rates in long‐lived turtles increase with size

Vital rates for small, non‐breeding individuals are important components of population dynamics for many species, but often individuals of these sizes are difficult to locate, capture, and track. As such, biologists frequently lack reliable estimates of juvenile survival because sample sizes and recapture rates for this life stage are low. Long‐lived animals often take many years to reach sexual maturity and spend much of this time in the smaller size classes, making them sensitive to changes in survival rates. We estimated the survival rates of all size classes for the northern map turtle (Graptemys geographica) using a mark‐recapture dataset with >3,500 captures from 2019–2021 and 210 nests from 2018–2021. As turtle size increased, annual survival probability increased regardless of sex. Estimated annual survival probability for turtles >18 cm long (i.e., adult females >15 years) was about 0.95, over 4 times higher than turtles that were 3 cm long (i.e., hatchlings 3,500 captures over 3 years, and 210 nests over 4 years. We found that as turtle size increased, annual survival probability increased regardless of sex. Turtles >18 cm (i.e., adult females >15 years) were estimated to have ~0.95 annual survival probability, over 4 times higher than turtles ~3 cm (i.e., hatchlings