A Wee Turtle's Lucky Day -- And Mine

On a recent, wet and overcast spring day I was walking through The Park in what I call "squirrel forest." It's an area that was full of tall trees and populated by tons of Fox squirrels. While there still are a lot of those, the trees took a hit between Hurricane Ike and the massive construction that went on in the area for most of 2009. There are still things that go on in the name of improvement and restoration over there, and the day I was walking it seems they'd put in a bunch of new mulch.

To this day I have no idea how I spotted this but I had just handed out nuts to dozens of squirrels and was ready to get home. I started walking toward the path when somehow my eyes fell on a tiny little shape that looked the color of the bits of tree bark mixed in with the dark, moist topsoil. I stooped to get a closer look and I thought I saw little hands or a foot. By the time my eyes focused those were gone but sure enough, it was the underside of a tiny turtle. Thank goodness I stopped because I don't know what would have happened otherwise. It was a miracle I didn't step on him, but he was also so far away from the water, I have no idea how he got there, let alone how he'd ever get back.

I picked him up in my gloves and saw that he had indeed both sets "hands" and "feet", a tail and head. And he seemed alive though his head was tucked so far back into his shell (as mine would be if an utter GIANT had picked me up) so I couldn't see his eyes. I wish I'd have thought to take a picture of it, but I was more concerned that he was alive and well. I walked as carefully as I could with him in one palm, upright and flat, with the other had cupping over it, to give him a sense of security -- if that can be had while something has taken you waaaay up into the air and now you are inevitably jostling with each resounding step.

I went to a place I knew there were lots of turtles and babies, but there was no shoreline. If he was not well, or unable to swim, I wanted him to be able to get out. I know nothing about turtles, and maybe he'd have been fine, but I wanted to pick a place that would give him the option to stay on land or step into the water when he was ready. I also wasn't sure if other turtles were territorial, or if he'd be bullied or picked on by others if he was not a part of their group. I thought of the shallows where so many seasoned duck mothers lead their little babies, but I know that snapping turtles lurk just below and with one swift motion can grab something little on the surface for s snack. I am not sure a turtle would eat a turtle, but I continued on. Finally I found a moss covered log, the same one where I've seen a turtle sunning himself every now and again. That could act as a "shoreline", where the little guy could stay until he wanted to swim away. I put him down and stood there for about 20 minutes, watching.


Slowly, his head came out, then a foot, then all his limbs and his tail. He hung there for another 10 minutes, and then I noticed he ventured into the water, hanging on to the log with the toe nails of one little foot. I smiled and took a few pictures, and decided all was well enough.

If you'd like an idea of just how small he was, here is a picture that will show you. This log is about as big as my forearm.... And that's my shadow snapping the pic.

It's this kind of stuff that makes me feel I've earned my day on earth. Call me crazy, but it makes me feel good.

Finding Warmth in Winter

I always enjoy strolling through The Park on sunny days when it's quiet, because it's then that the turtles --of which there is quite a healthy population -- come out to sun themselves. Being cold blooded, they must regulate their body temps by absorbing sun through their shells. I stood far away from this lone fella, but you can see that he indeed noticed me when I said something about getting vitamin D out loud. He then turned his head back, like George Hamilton. Gawd forbid he get a tan line from turning his head too long. Or maybe he realizes he's got a handsome profile (I was kind enough to shoot this from his good side).


I went over to get a closer shot. He posed for this and then, in the blink of an eye, slipped off the log and disappeared into the water. Now in a completely different part of the lake there is a little island and I usually can find a set of about 8 turtles who crawl up on a sunny patch on the shore, protected by surrounding greens from the wind, which on this day was quite chilly.
Someone ought to get wise and set up a little shack with cocktail service in the middle there. Where's the Geiko gekko these days? If he needed a gig on the side he'd be a perfect fit.

Catching The Last Spring Rays

I might have seen Mr.Goose on his own on my last walk (click HERE to read), but a few days later I saw he and the Mrs. standing in the setting sun on the far side of the center island, doing their evening preening. All the ducks follow a rather comforting routine of getting close to where they'll settle for the night and beginning a grooming sequence. They usually are no longer interested in my bread or cracked corn, as nature's instincts rule.

(I wish my own instincts would be that way when I'm watching TV in the evening on the couch. I wish my nature would be to say, "oh no, I'm close to going to bed, I have NO INTEREST in Ice Cream at this hour!")



I got closer and tried to shoot them again, since in the above video I had maxed out my zoom and knew it'd be even smaller on blogger. And to my amusement, I saw they'd been joined by a turtle, warming himself in the sun. There's a healthy population of turtles in the Lake. They're cold blooded and regulate their temperature by absorbing sun. I like to think of their shells like solar panels that they can draw upon long after it's dark. Click HERE to learn more.




Amazing how the geese use their long necks to curl in such a dramatic way, and can smooth their downy feathers with not just their beaks but the back of their heads. At times when I see waterbirds poking at themselves with their beaks, it looks like they're perhaps pinching out mites or some other little bug that's gotten on them.

But in fact their big, outer feathers have zipper-like little connections called barnucles. The preening straightens out any of these that might have come undone and restores them to their fully waterproof nature. Underneath those are small whispy feathers called down, which of course is what's used in pillows and comforters. Together they provides insulation and bouyancy. I learned about that when I took an all day training for cleaning birds caught in oil spills at the Wildlife Rehab Center. Hoping to never have to use those skills....

Mr. Grizzled from RiverDaze, you may have something else to add on this grooming activity....

The Snow White Effect

... captured badly on film:

I took a sunset walk with lots of food in my bag. I stopped by a little bridge that crosses a hidden finger of the lake, where very few people walk by. This is where some smart mothers have their babies, as they will be somewhat protected. But what can protect you from a mother who decided that she'd had enough?

I went hoping to see that an abandoned baby duck I'd noticed the day before had made it through the night. Happily, she had. Seems she's been left by her mother, which happens more than you'd think. Last spring it happened in this same spot with a set of five babies. They were a little bigger than this guy when orphaned and at least they all had each other. I watched them grow into teenagers and at that stage, you know they are OK.

I'd first noticed the errant mother and her sole remaining baby last week together, in the same shallow reeds by this bridge, but I haven't seen them together since. Once I saw the little one alone I knew it was for good. Of course I woke up several times in the night with worries that she'd be pulled under by a snapping turtle (probably the fate of her many siblings) or something else. So I made a beeline back as soon as I got the chance

And there she was, eating insects of the surface of the water. She eagerly scooped up my breadcrumbs which I'd broken into the tiniest of pieces for her tiny beak. It was nice and quiet, a moment for just us two...

All at once there were rabbits coming out of the underbrush, a squirrel or two running up for nuts, bluejays screaming from the branches above me, 6 ducks swimming over for bread, a few long tailed grackles cawing for a morsel and a common sparrow spiriting away with the crumbs. A trio of frogs I couldn't see started singing in the distance and a Nutria surfaced and began to clean himself with his front paws before noshing on the reeds.

I did a bad job of getting movies, but I did it to try to capture why I feel like Snow White when I come to this place. Animals of all kinds come out of nowhere, but as soon as a dog or other people come along, they scamper, hop, fly and swim away.

Continued...



I'd already fed her plenty but I wanted to give her some more as the bigger she gets the less she will seem like easy prey. As you can see, the other 6 ducks dominated. The trick is to feed the big ones to distract them and then get something to the baby at the same time.

I went to the feed store and bought some actual chick feed for her for next time. Let's all say a little prayer she's there. All she needs is another week or two and she'll be well on her way to a nice long life.

One day I'll have a videographer with me so I can feed all these animals coming at me without trying to also get pictures... Or, since I do have a film degree myself, I might take the expensive HD movie camera I bought for this purpose but never bring with me... Shoot the amazing things that go on around me with a camera that doesn't rack in and out of focus because I zoom in too fast... and I will be able to edit out the bad parts and splice things together. Until then, thanks for bearing with me!