GUESTS ... AND VISITORS

So far this Spring, I have "rescued" seven baby turtles off the local roads. Several I picked up while exercising -- jogging or biking -- & several I spotted while driving & stopped to get them. I picked up two turtles in almost the same spot ... two weeks apart.

I have also found dead turtles; squashed by traffic. I hate to find them like that.

I consider any baby turtle I encounter to be doomed unless I take action. Either the turtle will die on the road, or there is a good chance it will not survive unless, or until, it finds water to sustain it.

I keep the turtles with the idea of "head starting" them; raising them to the point were they are larger, have a stronger shell & can better survive in the wild.

The little ones I have this year are in dish pans, set up with a few inches of water, with some aquatic plants & a piece of cork bark to climb on & dry off when needed. [I removed the cork bark to take the pictures.]

They are fed daily & growth should be rapid. Depending on their size, most will spend at least the Summer with me, although I may keep them until next year, depending on how they size up. Each turtle may develop at a different pace.

This baby Snapping Turtle is kept by itself in the same type set-up. These turtles are more aggressive & can be "snappy" when it comes to sharing food & lodging. As with the other turtles, the Snapper is only intended to be a "guest" in my reptile collection.

Sometimes turtles find their way to me without any effort or traveling on my part. Maybe the word got out in the turtle community that my property is "turtle friendly".

This morning, doing my daily "tour" of my land, I found two "visitors"with shells. Not surprising, but it always makes me realize I must be in the right spot, at the right time, to find these creatures.

This is a large female Snapping Turtle, making her way up the bank of the creek which divides my property. She's about 150 times bigger -- with a shell about a foot long -- than the baby Snapping Turtle in the prior photo.

She was on her way to ... well ... who knows where ?? No doubt to lay eggs, but instinct is in effect & the where & when the nesting will occur is up to her. As with many adult turtles -- unlike the hatchling turtles -- as long as they are in no danger, I leave them alone to continue their journey.

As I moved away from the Snapper -- who was not too happy with my presence -- I encountered ANOTHER shelled visitor ... this one only about twenty feet away from the first one.

This is a female Three Toed Box Turtle, digging into the litter in a bamboo grove, trying her best to look inconspicuous. This may be the same turtle I found wandering around about three years ago. Their "world" -- since they are not aquatic -- can be limited to a several square mile area.

I don't find or see very many Box Turtles in the area where I live. I assume it is because so much of the land is farmed or too swampy. I've encountered more Box Turtles in the Northern & Western parts of Arkansas.

In the photo above, the turtle -- as a defence from predators -- has closed up the bottom shell tightly, keeping all "soft parts" protected. Thus the name, BOX Turtle.

This turtle did have some shell damage, as seen above my thumb in this picture. It appears at some point the turtle was bitten, as there are old indentations on both sides of the shell. This was probably done by either a dog or coyote. Certainly, not a cat !!

Shortly after I took the photos, I returned to find both turtles "gone". They may have been hiding, or in the case of the Snapping Turtle, simply continued on life's journey. They were no longer to be found. I had been there at the right time -- or just "lucky" -- to see these shelled visitors travel into -- & out of -- my life.