TurtzInMyYard
Well-Known Member
Last year, I made a point to study the wildlife who share my backyard with me. I've lived here in southern Alabama for the last six years. I frequently crossed paths with a turtle who seemed to know the landscape about as well as I did. It seemed that turtle had the gift of ubiquity as he appeared to be everywhere at the same time. I gave it notice, but little thought. Then I ran across three of the cutest tiniest turtles EVAH in the world. My first thought was how easily I could have stepped on one thinking it was no more than a misplaced stone. All three were within 18 inches or so of one another, just cruising through the yard. That got me interested and I wondered how many of the same turtle I was seeing. I was on a mission.
Every survey of my grounds came and went with a bottle of pink nail polish in my pocket. It turned out at season's end, I had marked 9 different turtles. I was shocked. I expected maybe two or three. I named each one of them something genuinely uninspiring. Please restrain the urge to become pedantic over the fingernail polish. Let there be peace.
The first to be so cruelly branded with pink embellishment was "Drip", followed by "Drop", then Stripe, Dot, Bud, Max, Tilly, Baby and T-Rex. Keep in mind, I had no idea the sex of any of these turtles. Drip was my favorite because I saw her/him everyday. It didn't take her long to figure out that an apple wedge in the hand was worth two snails under the hostas. She took to hand feeding right away. As if that weren't thrilling enough, she got to where she would make herself 'visible' and crawl out from under the hosta leaves so I could see her. If I pretended not to, she would crawl down the hill and make her way to me, begging for a treat. Her begging only lasts as long as it takes me to see her and cut a wedge of apple. She has a sweet and casual personality.
Drop is different. Drop is a female turtle. I now know this because of T-Rex. T-Rex was not a part of the 8 member herd all spring. He was fashionably late, not making his debut until late August. I didn't know his sex either. I hung him with the name T-Rex because he looks so 'jurrasic'. One day as I was enjoying my walk around the place, I notice something odd going on under the bird feeder. I couldn't make it out to save my life. I'm no good with unsolved mysteries, so I went to investigate. Well, my goodness. Would you look at that? Drop is quite obviously a female and there can be no doubt, I named T-Rex on point. There they were, in all their glory, engaging in what might well be the last mating of the season before brumation would ensue. Now, I knew, at least two of the nine sexes of my herd. That was in mid-October. None of them would be seen again that season, except for Rex. He made a surprising, and again fashionably late appearance in the middle of November. Satisfied that the harem were no where in sight, he accepted my apple wedge as a brumation gift and wandered back into the forest. I was very surprised how quickly Rex accepted my gift and one year later, he makes himself known for the price of a wedge of apple and has no hesitation about hand feeding either.
Drop is more of a wild turtle. She would really rather forego the wedge of apple or watermelon in preference of maintaining her stealthy nature. Unlike most of the herd, she is far more cautious and prefers to go unnoticed. But...when she's been detected at close range, she will stay rather than flee. The first time I offered her an apple wedge, she took off running for the forest. That's ok, maybe another day. It wasn't long before she was taking it from my hand and would even take steps toward me to get it. But this is a turtle who is gone in sixty seconds.
The only other turtle I engage frequently is Tilly. Initially, it seemed as though Drip and Drop were buddies because it seemed like they both gravitated toward the north lawn. It is a narrow strip measuring something around 40 ft between the garage and the neighbors fence. It is typically a piece of lawn less traveled by humans and squirrels. There is very little vegetation in which to seek cover, but it is quiet and there is a small population of snails in the area. Their association began to be less frequent and I think it is probably because Drip likes the human and isn't afraid, whereas Drop would rather avoid the contact altogether. But Drip was not without a friend for long. I began seeing Tilly and Drip team up. I have a 'quarter bed' situated between the wall of the garage and the brick wall. I fits snugly into the corner where the brick wall meets the garage wall. In that bed are some undependable Iris's, a single Amaryllis and a dwarf Japanese maple. Tilly and Drip can often be found under the mulch a few feet apart.
Last year, I developed a theory that not all of my herd were 'residents'. Some of them you see every day, or at least every other day. The others are seen less frequently and don't seem to 'hang around'. I mean to say, you aren't likely to see Bud or Max lounging around any burrows around the house or under the hostas. I wonder if maybe they are 'travelers'. It might be that my yard is simply 'in their way' to where they're going. Yesterday, I made the determination Max is a male. I spotted him in a place where I don't normally see turtles. He was creeping along the brow of a stand of trees in the front lawn, heading toward the south woods. I wasn't sure from the distance exactly 'who' I was looking at. I though it was Dot because I saw she had burrowed under the pine mulch in the front beds, which I have never seen a turtle there either. I went to confirm the identity but couldn't make it out well. Finally, I was able to remember, pulled out my nail polish and freshened his mark. I walked around the grounds and came full circle, very surprised to see Rex in the front lawn. I spoke to him. It wasn't the first time I'd seen him that day. I was on my first cup of coffee and headed out into the backyard with it. I made about ten steps and spied something in the path to the north lawn. Probably a limb from last nights thunderboomers. As I approached the image became clear. It was Rex mating Drop...for at least the second time this spring. This is at least 3 times I have witnessed the two of them mating. Make that four. I forgot about late last summer. I laughed to myself but continued on my way in spite. If you're going to copulate in the middle of my path to the lawn, expect to be interrupted. Poor Rex. He was 'stuck in'. Drop wore the look of sheer panic. She even began to drag him along her route. Rex rolled his head over at me as if to say...'Really'? I left them to their business and checked my roses. Satisfied everything there looked great, I headed back. When I came around the corner, they were still locked up. I mentally gestured a pardon and hurried on my way past them. I looked back to see Rex standing on his license plate with his head thrown back. Drop was stretching her neck far above the tall grass, all eyes on me. I went off and left them be. About an hour later, I checked just in time to see them part...and true to her nature, Drop was gone in sixty seconds. No apple for her, but Rex took his.
When I saw him this time, he was not really hiding, he was just lounging on top of the pine mulch. Rex is a nickname. His formal name is Casa Nova. "Rex, old buddy, you just missed Max, which is probably a good thing, but what are you doing in this neck of the yard?" He just looked like a dinosaur at me. Then it hit me. Oh, yeah, Dot hangs out here. But, again, I cannot be sure Dot is a female and haven't had as much interaction with her/him.
So, you're all up to date. My herd has returned except for Drip and Baby. Baby is the only baby turtle I saw last year. Baby hung out in the north lawn under the plumbago. I haven't seen Baby since. I haven't given up on Drip. It's still early and the hostas are just barely breaking the ground. Maybe she will show up pretty soon.
I need to come back and edit this to include some photos. WARNING: some may find these images to contain offensive or graphic content. Pink fingernail polish will be in evidence.
Happy Easter Y'all.
Every survey of my grounds came and went with a bottle of pink nail polish in my pocket. It turned out at season's end, I had marked 9 different turtles. I was shocked. I expected maybe two or three. I named each one of them something genuinely uninspiring. Please restrain the urge to become pedantic over the fingernail polish. Let there be peace.
The first to be so cruelly branded with pink embellishment was "Drip", followed by "Drop", then Stripe, Dot, Bud, Max, Tilly, Baby and T-Rex. Keep in mind, I had no idea the sex of any of these turtles. Drip was my favorite because I saw her/him everyday. It didn't take her long to figure out that an apple wedge in the hand was worth two snails under the hostas. She took to hand feeding right away. As if that weren't thrilling enough, she got to where she would make herself 'visible' and crawl out from under the hosta leaves so I could see her. If I pretended not to, she would crawl down the hill and make her way to me, begging for a treat. Her begging only lasts as long as it takes me to see her and cut a wedge of apple. She has a sweet and casual personality.
Drop is different. Drop is a female turtle. I now know this because of T-Rex. T-Rex was not a part of the 8 member herd all spring. He was fashionably late, not making his debut until late August. I didn't know his sex either. I hung him with the name T-Rex because he looks so 'jurrasic'. One day as I was enjoying my walk around the place, I notice something odd going on under the bird feeder. I couldn't make it out to save my life. I'm no good with unsolved mysteries, so I went to investigate. Well, my goodness. Would you look at that? Drop is quite obviously a female and there can be no doubt, I named T-Rex on point. There they were, in all their glory, engaging in what might well be the last mating of the season before brumation would ensue. Now, I knew, at least two of the nine sexes of my herd. That was in mid-October. None of them would be seen again that season, except for Rex. He made a surprising, and again fashionably late appearance in the middle of November. Satisfied that the harem were no where in sight, he accepted my apple wedge as a brumation gift and wandered back into the forest. I was very surprised how quickly Rex accepted my gift and one year later, he makes himself known for the price of a wedge of apple and has no hesitation about hand feeding either.
Drop is more of a wild turtle. She would really rather forego the wedge of apple or watermelon in preference of maintaining her stealthy nature. Unlike most of the herd, she is far more cautious and prefers to go unnoticed. But...when she's been detected at close range, she will stay rather than flee. The first time I offered her an apple wedge, she took off running for the forest. That's ok, maybe another day. It wasn't long before she was taking it from my hand and would even take steps toward me to get it. But this is a turtle who is gone in sixty seconds.
The only other turtle I engage frequently is Tilly. Initially, it seemed as though Drip and Drop were buddies because it seemed like they both gravitated toward the north lawn. It is a narrow strip measuring something around 40 ft between the garage and the neighbors fence. It is typically a piece of lawn less traveled by humans and squirrels. There is very little vegetation in which to seek cover, but it is quiet and there is a small population of snails in the area. Their association began to be less frequent and I think it is probably because Drip likes the human and isn't afraid, whereas Drop would rather avoid the contact altogether. But Drip was not without a friend for long. I began seeing Tilly and Drip team up. I have a 'quarter bed' situated between the wall of the garage and the brick wall. I fits snugly into the corner where the brick wall meets the garage wall. In that bed are some undependable Iris's, a single Amaryllis and a dwarf Japanese maple. Tilly and Drip can often be found under the mulch a few feet apart.
Last year, I developed a theory that not all of my herd were 'residents'. Some of them you see every day, or at least every other day. The others are seen less frequently and don't seem to 'hang around'. I mean to say, you aren't likely to see Bud or Max lounging around any burrows around the house or under the hostas. I wonder if maybe they are 'travelers'. It might be that my yard is simply 'in their way' to where they're going. Yesterday, I made the determination Max is a male. I spotted him in a place where I don't normally see turtles. He was creeping along the brow of a stand of trees in the front lawn, heading toward the south woods. I wasn't sure from the distance exactly 'who' I was looking at. I though it was Dot because I saw she had burrowed under the pine mulch in the front beds, which I have never seen a turtle there either. I went to confirm the identity but couldn't make it out well. Finally, I was able to remember, pulled out my nail polish and freshened his mark. I walked around the grounds and came full circle, very surprised to see Rex in the front lawn. I spoke to him. It wasn't the first time I'd seen him that day. I was on my first cup of coffee and headed out into the backyard with it. I made about ten steps and spied something in the path to the north lawn. Probably a limb from last nights thunderboomers. As I approached the image became clear. It was Rex mating Drop...for at least the second time this spring. This is at least 3 times I have witnessed the two of them mating. Make that four. I forgot about late last summer. I laughed to myself but continued on my way in spite. If you're going to copulate in the middle of my path to the lawn, expect to be interrupted. Poor Rex. He was 'stuck in'. Drop wore the look of sheer panic. She even began to drag him along her route. Rex rolled his head over at me as if to say...'Really'? I left them to their business and checked my roses. Satisfied everything there looked great, I headed back. When I came around the corner, they were still locked up. I mentally gestured a pardon and hurried on my way past them. I looked back to see Rex standing on his license plate with his head thrown back. Drop was stretching her neck far above the tall grass, all eyes on me. I went off and left them be. About an hour later, I checked just in time to see them part...and true to her nature, Drop was gone in sixty seconds. No apple for her, but Rex took his.
When I saw him this time, he was not really hiding, he was just lounging on top of the pine mulch. Rex is a nickname. His formal name is Casa Nova. "Rex, old buddy, you just missed Max, which is probably a good thing, but what are you doing in this neck of the yard?" He just looked like a dinosaur at me. Then it hit me. Oh, yeah, Dot hangs out here. But, again, I cannot be sure Dot is a female and haven't had as much interaction with her/him.
So, you're all up to date. My herd has returned except for Drip and Baby. Baby is the only baby turtle I saw last year. Baby hung out in the north lawn under the plumbago. I haven't seen Baby since. I haven't given up on Drip. It's still early and the hostas are just barely breaking the ground. Maybe she will show up pretty soon.
I need to come back and edit this to include some photos. WARNING: some may find these images to contain offensive or graphic content. Pink fingernail polish will be in evidence.
Happy Easter Y'all.