Too little is known about their behavior and general ecology. Understanding a species' ecology is vital for making recommendations on how to manage populations or alleviate hazards that threaten them. Nonetheless certain modern threats to terrapins were identified. Among the most obvious were habitat destruction, perhaps the greatest threat to all native wildlife, highway mortality, and drowning in crab traps. Thousands of terrapins die each year in some coastal regions because they enter crab traps and are unable to escape.
Terrapins breathe air and can drown in a few hours.
In addition, as a South Carolina crab trapper told me, some terrapins are killed by the larger blue crabs. Two clear messages emerged from the workshop. One is that protective steps should be taken to avoid having to place the diamondback terrapin on the federal endangered species list. The significance of the recommendations is far-reaching. We can avoid regulations that might arise to protect a species if we can identify the problems and solve them before laws are necessary.