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May 21
2010
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Earlier today, out taking photos for a grant application, I spied a monstrous snapping turtle paddling just below the surface. Its carapace was probably about 12-14" wide. Did you know that a female snapping turtle generally has to reach about 19 years of age before it starts nesting and laying eggs? That's one of the reason it's so important that we prevent the harvest of these creatures by commercial watermen.
Later, the turtle, or one of its cohorts, came up for a bask on a log. You can see how large it is in comparison the the painted turtle in the foreground.
The trip also including sitings of a brown water snake, green frogs, a school of sunfish, a kingfisher, and a great blue heron, as well as an upset red-winged blackbird.
