Whenever I'm driving the truck I rescue any of the slider turtles that are on the move across Florida roads. They are not likely to survive road crossings as there is a general disregard for the sancity of wildlife in Florida. I should say that the disregard for the environment extends beyond Florida (read about the pointless slaughter of Grizzly Bears in Montana at this link).
I release the sliders into my secure ponds where they are far from any motorized vehicles. I hadn't seen the red-eared slider in the image above (Trachemys scripta elegans) for a very long time, until this afternoon. I believe he is the same turtle that was so tame and fond of cat food last summer. Read more about that turtle at this link: Red-eared Slider Turtle.
I kind of like the very fast shot above that captured all the tiny droplets of water. He was bobbing up and down feasting on cat food I tossed to him. Periodically he would spit water out, roll over, splash more, then feast more.
Red-eared Sliders are not native to Florida. They are best known as the pet-shop turtles of our childhood. This (above) is a native Yellow-bellied slider (Trachemys scripta scripta) that I rescued a few days ago. She was quite large and extremely scared. I watched as two cars almost ran over her. Then I stopped in the middle of the road, stopping traffic, and almost got run over myself trying to grab her.
She sat by the pond for a very long time before finally deciding to dive in.
She was about the size of a large dinner plate. Above, my hand for scale. She weighed about 15 pounds (6.8 kg).
The Red-eared Slider has a very distinctive red marking alongside either side of his head as you can see even underwater in both of these images.
Click on any image to enlarge
Below: He is a little smaller than the Yellow-bellied female but still a substantial turtle. He was quite hungry and I found myself begging the neighbors for cat food as I repeatedly forget to pick up turtle food. He is quite happy eating cat food.
Above and Below: A friend was playing around blowing bubbles and I captured a few of them with a building thunderstorm and the setting sun in the background. It was a nice, whimsical shot that looks like it occurred on a cool day. It was anything but cool. The temperatures have been in the mid-upper 90°s F (35° C+) for months.
FLORIDA'S ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTERS
In the shot above I marked where the normal water line should be. Put another way the jon boat should be submerged in about 4 feet of water where it rests on dry ground. A pine tree grows up beside the lake level gauge. The top of the gauge is set to 24-feet above sea level, the minimum normal level for this lake.
The only way to help change what's happening in Florida is to vote for a Democrat. Any Democrat will do, but it might help to start by voting for President Obama and Florida's Senator Bill Nelson. Republicans do not care about the environment.
Donate to President Obama at this Link
Donate to Senator Bill Nelson at this Link