Today I went to a neighborhood park, with a pond, and saw a dead turtle. Being a turtle hobbyist, I brought some Wardley's Turtle Pellets to see if the other pond turtles were hungry. Sure enough, they chomped down every last one.
This got me to thinking. I live in Florida, and perhaps they environment for this pond doesn't contain enough vegetation for these turtles. Perhaps they've been just getting fed bread and whatever else people throw them. Moreover, being in FLorida means that a lot of these turtles are Florida Cooters, which are strictly vegetarians.
What I'm getting at is, how should I assess this pond to see if it needs some environmental restoration, or introduction of native plants? How would you go about assisting the acquatic life there, grass roots and all, since I'm not sure the authorities really do anything for the wildlife in itself. It's more a pond for decoration.
