I love turtles and at this time of year they are easy to find, especially if you are near a pond on a sunny day. It is hard to tell from this picture but this is a very small, about 2″ big, painted turtle sitting on a clump of mud in a shallow pond.
These painted turtles were all lined up at the edge of another pond….
And this one is poised to dive in if I make a step closer (which I didn’t)
And this turtle has a new friend….
Category Archives: painted turtles
Painted Turtles
Painted turtles are probably our most common turtle on Cape Cod. They certainly are the easiest to find and see. On warm afternoons some areas have spots where over a hundred turtles may be seen basking in the sun together.
Have you seen a turtle yet this spring on the Cape? Watch for them in fresh water ponds or lakes along the shore. They love to rest on small tussocks of dirt and vegetation such as this or on half submerged logs where they can easily slip into the water if danger approaches. Soon you will see turtles of all kinds traveling about looking for mates so keep your eyes open!
We have several other fresh water turtles that live on the Cape. Can you name them all?
Turtles, Turtles Everywhere!
The turtles are a bit late laying their eggs this year but those that waited may have more successful nests than those that answered nature’s call and laid eggs during the horrid cold, wet weather. Turtle eggs can rot and attract parasites, especially in the damp….
I saw several painted turtles last week while they were laying eggs. Painted turtles are very common on Cape Cod and can be found in almost every pond and bog in every town. All turtles lay their eggs on land, whether they are sea turtles, pond turtles or land turtles like box turtles. Usually they lay their eggs in June but this has been an unusual year here.
This lovely lady was none too pleased about being picked up. She was done laying her eggs and heading back to the pond she came from. Even if you don’t see them laying eggs female turtles generally have short tails, long claws on their back feet for digging and a flat bottom. The males have longer tails and have a concave spot on the bottom, both of which are handy for mating.
This is a different female across the Cape but similarly occupied on the same day. She is filling up the hole she has deposited her eggs in and was more or less oblivious to me as I took her picture. I didn’t touch her or pick her up and left very quickly after taking these shots so I didn’t interrupt her.
This is another shot of her pushing that dirt back in the hole.
Kids and Nature
Kids and nature are a natural mix and just a simple walk can be full of all sorts of wonders.
You might spy a painted turtle on a rock.
You could stop at a bird blind along the way to see what you could see.
You might see a red-winged blackbird singing and showing off his red epaulets.
You could find a caterpillar like this wooly bear crossing the path. Notice how it curls up to protect itself.
Or a box turtle. This lady was the first to be found on the Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary this season. She was brought in to the center to be weighed and measured and checked to see if she was a sanctuary regular. The sanctuary has been keeping records of the box turtle population there for many years and kids love to be part of gathering the data.
Or some Fowler’s toads. These gentlemen had taken a wrong turn and were found in a damp stairwell when we went outside to play some games after lunch. Their black chins and release noise told us they were males. Toads often can’t seem to tell the difference between males and females if they are excited about mating and the males have a special noise they make to let other males know they are not females. The kids were very excited to touch and hold these little toads before we released them far from the stairwell.
What did you see today?