While traveling to the lake house on Sunday we came upon a turtle massacre where a family of Yellow-bellied slider turtles (Trachemys scripta scripta) had attempted to cross a road between two mostly dry lakes. The large female was already dead and attracting vultures and the large male and several of the juveniles had taken cover. This little guy was frozen in the middle of the road.
We stopped and rescued him. . . taking him to live in the ponds behind the lake house where there is some safety and some other turtles already in residence.
He was pretty scared and stayed tightly in his shell for a long time, even after we put him down at water's edge by one of the ponds.
Yellow-bellied slider turtles are land and water turtles belonging to the family Emydidae. These turtles are native to Florida and are found in a wide variety of habitats. Males will reach from 5-8 inches (13-20 cm) in length while females will grow from 8-13 inches (20-33 cm).
After the little guy was sure we weren't watching he took off into the pond. . . and I haven't seen him since. They are capable of hiding quite well, even when they are not scared. Below: My most tame rescue turtle (a Red-eared slider) is barely visible in one of the ponds. When he is hungry he makes himself very visible to me. . . the rest of the time he stays happily hidden.
It is possible for Red-eared sliders and Yellow-bellied sliders to interbreed. For that reason Florida has banned the sale of Red-eared Sliders. I assume my big Red-eared came up into the ponds as the lake dried up.
We've finally had a few showers. . .but they've been brief and more wind than rain. In this shower (above) yesterday afternoon a gust of wind cracked my tallest mango tree sending the top half of the tree to the ground.
Above and Below: Despite the few showers the lake is still missing. There are occasionally a few puddles but they don't last long. The water where I'm standing should be at least 10-feet deep.
Above and Below: To keep the turtles happy I irrigate the ponds every afternoon. The artificial rain suits them fine. . . for now.
We're Following:
designers love him. . .
and so do we
Australian model Jarrod Scott has stripped bare for Vogue Hommes International. In what at first appears to be a fairly standard black and white shoot captured by famed photographer Sølve Sundsbø, Jarrod dons sharp tailoring and poses simply in the studio setting. Then, in the last shot we are surprised to be presented with a fully nude Jarrod who is laid out completely bare. Does the shot actually have artistic merit? Does anyone find it appealing or interesting? Or has the photographer added the shot in merely for shock value? We think yes, yes, yes, and yes. . . the photo did its job. The magazine sold out worldwide.
Take a peek at the full shoot and cover and decide for yourself. At this link:
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