Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Was at it again today, scouting for turtles since, although it was cooler by about 5-10 degrees, the sun was shining bright....Good thing I went out.

Found 3 more wood turtles, 1 new females and a male that had been notched in 2004!!! The first female had just emerged on the bank, while the other pair, were submerged side-by-side, about 2 feet from the bank heading out of the water to bask. The male saw me and dove down to deeper water under a log, but the female stayed put sticking her head above the surface. After waiting 10 minutes to see if she'd come out on land, she turned around and started to go back under, so I went in after both and caught, first the female, and then after putting her on the bank, went after the male. I got soaked...and given that I have a 26" inseam and how cold the water was, I'd say it was about 30" deep. My toes were freezing....Cold Blooded reptiles aren't phased at all by frigid water!!! Enjoy. Oh yeah, We're putting transmitters on the 2 females....the first we'll be tracking.

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Great shots once again, Matt -- thanks for sharing your adventures and finds! Here's some diagnostic shots of a female Blanding's a friend found a couple years ago in his yard in SE Wisconsin.

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Carl

...of the same turtle.

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Carl

...of her tail and rear plastron edge.

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Carl

..oh yeah, forgot to mention, I saw the first snake of the year too...a garter. I got video, but no pics of it.

notice, the concave section is somewhat apparent and in focus.

..note the v-shaped notches filed into his shell. Not too big, just enough to be evident.

..A great day, albeit a wet one!!

Awsome wood turtle pics! I can't wait to start to start herping this year.

Bryant

We realized have your massasauga shirt from CR

Thanks. That's ok....I didn't even realize it was missing.

Won't be long. Snakes will be out.