Make way for Turtles! Is it turtle migration time? I've seen a lot of pictures of turtles both out on the blogosphere and on Facebook. Our yard isn't exactly a high-frequency area for turtles...and yet this fella was discovered by our son when he went out to mow. Luckily, he saw the turtle before he started mowing.
He and his dad relocated Ms. Turtle* to the wooded area near the creek that runs along the edge of our neighborhood (far enough away that they needed to take a car....still wondering how the little fella got in our yard).
*I originally designated the turtle as "mister"--but have since been educated on how to tell a "Mr." from a "Ms." See comments section below for details on box turtle gender.
23 comments:
Hi Bev,
We have lots of toads roaming around our yard. Off subject: I've finished another books for the Vintage Mystery Challenge. N or M? by Agatha Christie. Have a great day!
Sherrie
Just Books
Turtle migration time? LOL
Glad this one was noticed and saved.
That's a pretty good sized turtle! I'm glad your son noticed him too.
Aw - sweet turtle pics! I think turtles are so cute. I've never seen any in the wild here though.
Lucky turtle! He's probably much happier now that he's out in the woods by a creek.
Actually, it looks like your "Mr. Turtle" is actually a "Miss." Definitely a Eastern Box Turtle, female. You can tell because the males are more colorful, have red eyes, and have an indention on the bottom half of their bottom shell. She was probably looking for a place to lay her eggs. If you had put your finger between the front of her back legs, you could have felt her eggs! (My Dad is a hobby herpetologist, so I grew up around A LOT of reptiles.) And I'm just here for the book giveaway. :)
I just had to leave another comment. I took a picture of one of my dad's males, and this is what a boy looks like...
http://backseatwriter.wordpress.com/2008/04/23/bug-jar-hello-bright-eyes/
And here is a male and a female...
http://backseatwriter.wordpress.com/2008/02/17/life-lessons-began-in-my-familys-ark/
(Just scroll down and you'll see the same male with a female. I also talk about our "turtle history".)
Thanks for indulging me!
Amy
Cool shot! Glad your son saw him in time.
Don't you love finding extraordinary things in your ordinary yard?
What beautiful markings on his shell. We don't have turtles roaming around here in NZ so I'm quite fascinated with your photos.
http://cat-bookmagic.blogspot.com/2011/07/saturday-snapshot-paris.html
How random to find a turtle in your garden! He's a pretty thing, isn't he?
how fun to just go out in the yard and find a turtle :) thanks for stopping by today.
Turtles are not what you'd expect in the garden! Great photos!
Thanks for visiting my blog.
@Amy: Thanks for the info on the turtle (and pix of Mr. & Ms.)! I always wondered how one could tell the difference....
Very cool, and such a pretty patterned shell.
Were you not tempted to keep it? I agree. I really like the patterns too!
We find turtles from time to time in our yard...it is always a fun time had by all (I have young boys).
I've never had a turtle in my yard. Amazing how well they can get around.
I'm glad that your son saw the turtle before mowing!
One of our dogs was freaking out in the back corner of our yard one day and we couldn't figure out why she was whining and frantically digging. Well, there was a turtle in the yard next door. We alerted our neighbors, but by the time they got home, the turtle had traveled elsewhere.
Love turtles!
Beautiful turtle. I'll bet he was happy enough to be relocated in the woods. :)
We stopped once on the road for a suspicious lump up ahead. It turned out to be a large turtle. We'd stopped just in time. We gingerly relocated him down the side of the road nearest a creek.
Very cool turtle. Nice photos.
Wow! Can't say I have seen one ever :)
Cool shot. I have yet to find a turtle in my yard!!
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