Hatching a plan

Hudson - In a hands-on herpetology study, students at Hudson High School recently took on the role of protector for a group of painted and box turtles whose mothers had laid their eggs on school grounds. Since the renovation at the school about five years ago, turtles from the Assabet River have laid eggs in areas on the school property that are no longer safe for them.

Last spring, with the help of the school's head custodian, students in a herpetology class made nests in a safe area and transferred the newly laid eggs there. After the eggs started hatching in September, the students released more than 100 turtles into the wild.