Love the One You're With (1 image)

Sometimes when you go out looking for one thing, you find something else entirely. If you are lucky. Yesterday I went out to photograph birds. Unfortunately, except for lots of mallards and a few quail, I was pretty much shut out.

But I did notice what turned out to be a Western Painted Turtle basking on a tree jutting up out of the water. I watched it share that tree trunk with some ducks for quite a while. 

Then it finally plopped into the water and was gone. So, later, I did a little reading. 

Western Painted Turtles:

- Live between 30 and 50 years. 

- Can be distinguished by orange or yellow markings on their sides, with a relatively flat, smooth upper shell.

- Live in ponds, lakes, marshes or slow moving rivers that have soft, muddy bottoms. Basking in the sun helps rid them of parasites.

- Nest near water and lay four to 15 eggs.

- Are genderless at birth. Ambient temperatures during the eggs' incubation period will determine the gender of the hathatchling. 

- Typically don't need human "help" to get back to water!