Look 👀 Both Ways!

I saved this Painted turtle this morning attempting to cross 107 Cutoff (Rt.351) -

I moved her some twenty feet off the side of the road, in the direction she was headed.

If only USPS mail carriers could tell the difference between rocks and turtles 🐢, I’m sure others would be saved too…

A happy ending nonetheless!

A Handsome Terrapene! - *Update*

I saw a Facebook posting the other day regarding box turtles that read -

"Found a box turtle in your yard? Don't move it. They live 50+ years inside an area the size of a football field and know every log and stump in it.  Relocate one "somewhere safer" and it spends the rest of its life trying to walk home.  Most don't make it."!

Well, that hit hard, so I decided Nolan needed to be returned back to the area I caught him - Rt107 in Jonesborough. So earlier this past week, that’s what I did -

I don't recall the exact spot we found him but did my best to try and get him in the general vicinity, hoping his walk home wouldn't be too far off.

Just beyond the trees in the picture below was a small pond about 100 yards off the highway. So, I walked him down there, lectured him about the dangers of trying to cross the road and thanked him for spending a week with me -

I'm sure he'll be just fine.

A Handsome Terrapene!

Meet “Nolan”, short for Nolachuckey -

We rescued him attempting to cross Rt. 107 in Jonesborough!

He has a bit of damage to the top of his shell but otherwise, he looks to be in great shape and is a handsome dude -

Gave him a bath, then let him soak for a bit in clean water to get himself a drink.

He’s getting bolder and staying out of his shell -

My favorite type of turtle 🐢 hands down!

Ms. Trixie met and befriended Nolan -

Fun Fact - Did you know that the box turtle was officially designated as the Tennessee state reptile in 1995!

Oh, Snap, Literally!

Have a look at who paid us a visit yesterday afternoon, a gorgeous snapping turtle!

It was underneath the lone tree we having close to the back of our house, which is a good 400+ feet from our pond.  We were standing nearby the tree talking when this dude decided to lumber out and make a run (I use the term run loosely) in the direction of the pond -

The timing was perfect, as my second cousin once removed (thank you Google for clarifying), Ms. Emma, was with us.  She wasn't as impressed as I, and a bit scared of this prehistoric looking creature - 

It behaved as snapping turtles typically do once they feel threatened and began acting tough with it's mouth open, while lunging and snapping.  However, I know the act and wasn't swayed in the slightest -

Against my better judgement I put her back under the tree and left her alone.  Really should have relocated her far away from our pond.  As much as I adore turtle, these snapping turtles are really an environmental hazard!  They can disrupt small ornamental ponds by eating fish and vegetation.

We'll meet again I'm sure, at which time we'll address her living arrangements.

Outta Brumation They Come!

An Eastern Box Turtle!

Still dirty from it's brumation too!

How symbolic that it was rescued while crossing the road on Easter morning, a resurrection of sorts -

This dude was sealed up nice and tight. Box turtles close up in their shell as a primary defense mechanism, utilizing a unique hinged plastron (bottom shell) to seal themselves tightly against predators like raccoons and foxes. This "door" allows them to seal their limbs and head away from danger, acting as a near-impenetrable armor. They use if as a defense mechanism when they feel threatened or in fear.

I really wanted to keep this dude. Clean it up and wait to see it emerge and start crawling about.  Was curious what color eye it had and weather it was a boy or a girl.  But alas, we set it down on the other side of the abutting chain link, to keep the dogs away from it, and it has since skedaddled off, alas. Hoping we come across another one or two as we make our drives from Johnson City to Limestone.

In case you were wondering - "Brumation is a state of dormancy and metabolic slowdown in reptiles, amphibians, and other ectotherms (cold-blooded animals) during cold winter months, usually from November to February. Similar to hibernation, it is a survival mechanism to conserve energy when temperatures drop and food is scarce."

And Then There Were None!

There have been turtles 🐢 sunbathing in the pond on our farm since I arrived here in East Tennessee back in December, YES in December, with the exception of the colder days and weeks. They've been out there on that log fairly regularly when driving in and out.

However, the last week or so, and with the temps into the 70s and 80s, we've not seen a one!

We did have temps drop below freezing recently, after a warm up, so not sure if that effected them or perhaps something or someone else has taken place.  It's awful weird is all, not a single one!

According to one local fella, turtles 🐢 are bad to have in your pond because they'll eat the fish. His recommendation was a .22 to address the problem.

Hmmm 🤨

"Shell" Shocked Perhaps

I don't think our pond turtle know what to do with this crazy East Tennessee weather.

We're down into the twenties yesterday and today but a week earlier, when I took the above pic, it was nearing sixty.

Shoot, I don't know what to do with this weather...

However, that being said, I certainly picked the right time to move from Boston!  They just got hammered with over twenty inches of snow!  On top of the twenty of so that was already on the ground.

Kudos to small victories.

More Wildlife Adventures Of A Mailman

On Friday afternoon, I was delivering a large package to one of the houses in the ritzy neighborhood of my route.  As I was walking up the driveway I noticed something tiny moving near the garage doors.  Even from a distance it caught my attention, perhaps it was my spidey-senses, and I knew it was some sort of critter.

So, I picked up my pace with excitement and lo and behold looky what it was! A very tiny, new born I'd guess, snapping turtle -

Still covered in the dried dirt it crawled out from -

Just look at how tiny!  Not much bigger than my thumbnail -

So, I immediately started looking for others in that general area.  I was a tad leery since I was now at their garage area and poking around looking under their bushes and the car parked in the driveway but whatever I didn't care and unfortunately I didn't notice any others.

Across from their garages, about some ~30', the lawn pitches upwards quite a bit. The slope, which is all mulch, runs the width of that side of the property, from street to wooded back area out back. In the mulch I noticed the mulch disturbed and that something had been digging - 

Upon closer inspection, sure enough, it was the snapping turtle nest!  Sadly, it looked as though a predator had located it and dug the nest up, and looking at all the egg shells guessing left with a full belly -

Here's my theory - of course there very well could have been others young'n survived the attached and that hatched along with this dude but I'm thinking most of the eggs were eaten and the egg this little fella came out of was spared.  Whether the predator simply missed it or ate it's full and left or was scared off before digging up and finishing ALL the eggs.

Snapping turtle eggs typically hatch between late August and October, so this little fella is right on time.

Although, the area these homes are in does appear to abut what looks like wetlands with reeds, cattails, Golden Rod and Purple Loosestrife throughout, I've never seen a pond or standing marshy water.

Being SO tiny and with no water nearby I assumed this little guy was facing some insurmountable odds if I left him where he was, so I opted for relocation and in the LLV we both went.  He kept me company in the truck for the next couple of hours -

I brought him to a nice watery, marshy wetland spot about a half mile from my house. Trudged through the overgrown brush and thorns and poison ivy, placed him on a rock as close to the water as I could get, gave him a safety lecture about staying out of the street, and released him -

I hoping his chances of surviving improved and that he likes his new home!

The Wonders Of Mother Nature

Continuing with the turtle postings, here's another one -

I was heading back home from running an errand this morning before work, when I saw what I thought was another BIG snapping turtle about to cross the road.

However, as I got closer I was amazed to see that she wasn't about to cross but rather she was in the process of digging a hole to lay her eggs, right there on the edge of the road.

As much as I wanted to get out to inspect things, the last thing I wanted to do was spook her, so I threw the car in park, climbed into the passenger seat and took the below pictures.

Hoping she was able to complete her mission without anyone bothering her or trying to move her and that she made it safely back into the water.  However, I'm not sure how the littles will do when they hatch and emerge, as I suspect some will wander into the road and surely get run over.

I find these BIG monster turtles SO awesome and truly amazing!

Turtle Save Wednesday!

On the way to my third delivery stop of the day, and as I rounded the bend, this MONSTER was crossing the road! And I am NOT exaggerating when I say she was a MONSTER!  I've never seen such a BIG turtle except for the Galapagos tortoise and maybe a sea turtle at the aquarium.

She was moving from my left to right and was smack dab in the middle of the other lane. Since there was no one behind me, I slammed on the brakes and stopped in my lane, threw the LLV in park and jumped out.  Fortunately, an older man in a pickup truck heading the opposite direction, saw me then the turtle and stopped traffic in that direction.

I ran up to her, picked her up - OMG, she must have weighed 25-30 pounds, SO heavy, and I carried her in the direction she was headed and placed her on the side of the road -

These pictures do not truly show how BIG she really was.  I can't imaging anyone hitting her with their vehicle and walking away unscathed.

What a beauty!

I would have liked to take more pics but traffic was backing up, plus the mail must be delivered, so I jumped back into the mail truck and off I went but not before the older gentlemen in the pickup gave me a thumbs up and yelled "nice job" as he drove by.

I Named Her "Postal"...

I worked this morning delivering packages to Franklin residents.  While driving back roads and side streets, I came across this BIG lady just sitting in the roadway, TSK TSK!

Fortunately, an older gentleman in a van was already stopped, which helped block and protect her so other passerby's didn't hit her.

I pulled over immediately and jumped out to assist.  It was clear that the older guy didn't know what to do and had no intentions of getting too close to her.  I on the other hand just walked over, picked her up  -

and walked her to the other side of the road, in the direction she was headed in and down a small embankment, then safely put her down.  I gave her the same speech I've given the other turtles I've rescued and hope she takes heed -

She was none-to-happy with me when I picked her up and lunged a few times trying to get a piece of me, silly girl.

Hoping all's well that ends well!

Another Turtle Save!

Good news, another turtle rescued from the middle of the road this morning!

This one a youngster Snapping turtle.

I was beside it before I realized it was a turtle, it blended in so well.  Fortunately, there was no one behind me or coming in the opposite directions, so I hit the brakes, backed up, threw the LLV in park and jumped out to make the save!

I turned around and drove to the pond, which was right there.  You can actually see it in the background of the first pic.  Ironically, this dude was only some ~50' from where I made my last rescue of the Painted turtle.

Before placing the dude into the water and setting it free, I performed a road side surgical procedure.  You can see it in the pic below - I circled it in red, a leach was firmly attached and sucking away.  No worries, I grabbed my handy-dandy scissors and with one snip the leach was no more.

I'm gonna call it a win win!

Turtle Save No.2

Another Painted Turtle save again today!

I was in the postal LLV, driving to my first stop, when I spotted this lady sitting in the road, YIKES!

I quickly banged a U-turn, blocked the road, hopped out of the truck and snatched her up - she was a tiny turtle.  I pulled into an area near a big pond, snapped the below pic, then took her to the water and let her free - after a stern talking to about safety and roadways. 

Jumped back in the LLV and drove onto my first stop.

A good way to start my day!

Snappy

I went for a run on Wednesday afternoon, around 6ish and noticed this lovely lady making her way up the embankment and towards the schools parking lot.  Since she was headed away from the street, I didn't intervene.

I don't carry my phone when I run, so when I finished, I grabbed my phone, jumped in the car and drove the mile to the school to check on her.  Sure enough she was far enough away from the street and seemed content, so except for snapping (no pun intended) a few pics, I left her alone.

Interestingly, on Thursday morning, 7:15AM to be exact, I was headed out to breakfast.  Driving past the school, which at this time of the morning was all hustle and bustle with buses and parents dropping off their kids.  Guessing all the activity made this girl nervous, as we drove past the school I noticed her making her way back down the same embankment she had climbed the evening before.

We didn't stop, hoping she'd be fine and that no one would bother her.  There was no sign of her an hour later when we were headed back home, which was encouraging.  On my noontime walk, I made a couple additional laps in that area but was unable to locate her, so guessing she made her way to safety and is fine.

Wicked Tiny!

How bout another turtle post!!

This tiny young'n, and I mean tiny, is a Painted turtle.  I suspect he can't be more than a week old, if that.  I found this dude or dudette feverishly paddling in our pool either trying to stay afloat or trying to get someplace fast.

Perhaps, I should have used a quarter for comparison but the dime works too.  Actually, he\she was just about the exact same size as a quarter -

The beauty of the Painted turtle is really their undersides, where you can see some awesome reds and  oranges.  Painted turtles are super common in this area, so although still exciting, they're NOT Spotted turtle exciting - 

Emilie drove this fella\gal to a local pond here in Franklin and released him\her in a mucky side vernal pool versus the BIG pond.  A bass or heron would make a quick snackie of this little.

Loving me some local animal interactions!

Why Did The Turtle "Try to" Cross The Road

Be still my beating heart!

Look what Emilie saved crossing the street, a spotted turtle!  He's a lucky boy for sure.  I've seen or held one of these beauties in years, many many years.  Brings back some great childhood memories, when we'd catch these and painted turtles.  Who didn't have a kiddie pool in their backyards filled with turtles?!  Sure do miss those days...

This handsome specimen is a male!  We put him in a tank until we were able to release him. He didn't waste any time eating the worms we dropped into the tank, gobbled them right down!

Playing shy -

His undercarriage - 

Here's a pic from his perspective on his new home.  He sat there a short while contemplating his move and then BAM off he bolted with a KERPLUNK!

Hoping he stays away from the roadways.

Rise and Shine!

A clean bowl and a snack

Looks who's finally awoken from her long winter nap!

She stayed in her bowl of water, which we kept in the cool basement, all Winter long.  She went into a hibernation and stayed submerged most of the time.

I pulled the bowl upstairs this afternoon to check on her and performed a Spring cleaning too.

Topped off with a plump earthworm from the garden, which she eagerly began devouring.

Chrysemys Picta aka Painted Turtle

The most widespread native turtle of North America is the Painted Turtle.

Pictured is our Painted Turtle.

Emilie found this dude at the local dog park down the street.  It's surprising since it's quite a ways in all directions before you'd run into any type of water, stream, vernal pool, etc.  However, there it was.  My guess is that she found it not too long after it hatched.  This dude was and still is super small, about the size of a quarter!

As you can see in the above photo, he loves his earth worms.  Gobbles them down or rather attacks them as soon as their plopped into the water.  Then depending on the size of the worm the struggles begin, of course with the turtle always winning.