It’s a warm 62º F today (17º C) and sunny at Botany Pond. The drake Pushkin (now renamed from “Putin”) is waiting for the hour a day he gets with Dorothy when she comes down to feed and drink. He’s a mean drake, but a faithful one, and quacks mournfully in her absence.
Dorothy, meanwhile, is scratching around in her nest: I can hear her through the air-conditioner in my office.
And since the sun is out, so are the turtles, craning their necks to get a few rays:
Count this as my contribution to keep Jerry’s unbroken streak of getting at least one comment per post intact.
Also, nice turtle pic.
Lovely turtles!
I am pretty sure the unbroken streak is a very long one. However, starting here, the first four WEIT posts have not picked up any comments yet 🙂
WEIT kicks off with 0, 0, 0, 3, 2, 5, 1, 0, 0.
I love herps! When I was a child and teenager I spent endless hours searching for, collecting, and examining frogs, toads, salamanders, and turtles. I was once even bitten by a snapping turtle and had to have a tetanus shot. I was lucky to have my finger returned to me intact! Don’t even ask about the stupid thing I did that led to the attack.
I’m always glad to see the turtles.
Turtles are so inoffensive. I love them. Except perhaps for Snapping Turtles who I hear can take a finger off. Although about tortoises rather than turtles, I found this recent posting interesting:
Scientists use 3D-printed shells to ward off ravens and aim to save desert tortoises
https://www.vvdailypress.com/story/news/2022/04/16/scientists-use-3-d-printed-shells-ward-off-ravens-and-aim-save-desert-tortoises/7341455001/
I am wagering that the genetic heterozygosity of this pond is quite high as the population is probably an amalgam of red-eared sliders (Trachemys scripta) released from UC Physiology Labs over the years. They were a reptilian “lab rat” so to speak for many years.