A dozen turtle nests have been reported at Nanaimo's Diver Lake this summer, the most ever counted there, with nine of those confirmed to be from endangered western painted turtles.

The increase came in part due to residents reaching out to Nanaimo Area Land Trust's turtle ambassador program. Linda Brooymans, NALT's stewardship manager, said those reports helped confirm seven western painted turtle nests. Six nests were found in total last year.

"We did put out signs at Diver Lake asking people to let us know if they see nesting activity, and we did get quite a bit of a response," Brooymans said. "So that has helped us to record more nests."

The increase doesn't necessarily mean there are more nests than the previous year, she said, but it gives researchers a better understanding of jus

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