If you’re walking near Misery Bay, Ont., you might run into what looks like turtles. But they’re actually decoys for predators.

Last year, almost 50 blanding’s turtles were found dead on Manitoulin Island. Now, researchers at Laurentian University are using fake turtles to find out what killed the slow-moving reptile.

According to Jacqueline Litzgus, a biology professor at Laurentian University and part of the research team, these bright yellow chin turtles are endangered. She says an increase of merely one to two per cent of deaths can be detrimental to the population. But in Misery Bay, over half the population were wiped out.

“From a conservation perspective, this is very alarming,” she says.

By figuring out what is killing the blanding’s turtles, researchers hope to bring back the population to what it was before.

“By protecting the blanding’s turtle, you protect the entire wet land ecosystem,” Litzgus says.