Yesterday I was outside doing various gardening and animal related duties when I noticed the ducks in a row with their necks out straight, the way they do when they are curious (or stalking something and up to no good)
I saw a shiny turtle shell just ahead of them, and then the turtle turned her head a bit when she heard me talking to the ducks, and I saw a flash of yellow on her throat. A Blanding's turtle!!! Very exciting, since this is a threatened species in Minnesota, listed since 1984, and on the IUCN Redlist as endangered. Also endangered under SARA in Canada.
Emydoidea blandingii
Some of you might know how much I've always loved turtles, so this is a big deal for me.
They are pretty timid and shy, and tend to hide when disturbed. I have to admit that I petted her briefly until she tucked her head in and hissed. I left her alone to go about her business, and the ducks were already long gone by this point. Then I worried that she get trampled by Oakley by accident, or end up on the road, so I went looking for her. She was a very large turtle and could cover a fair bit of ground in a short time, so I never did find her again.
The 89th plate from Ernst Haeckel's ''Kunstformen der Natur'' (1904),
depicting organisms classified as Chelonia
Farewell beautiful!
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