wander project turtles in the pond...

First off, when we moved back to Indiana we found a house that was perfect for us. We ended up buying that house that sat on a Cul-du-sac and had a back yard that sloped to the retention pond. When we first moved into the house in October, we were settling into the house as the first trick or treaters arrived that evening. Luckily we had candy to pass out. The house and the pond evolved over the years we lived there (nearly 11). The one thing that was always present was the wildlife and the pond. In the winter, as the ice-covered the pond, we watched the geese. They, the geese left a mess all over the shore of the lawn, but they were beautiful to watch in the water.

Turtles were another creature. We had at least two types of turtles in the pond. The first type is often called a flat nose, or mud turtle. It lives at the bottom of the pond. The pictures of the turtle are of a mud turtle. They would often climb the exhaust pipe. The exhaust pipe allows air to escape from the neighborhood draining system. We had one storm that was so severe water came out the exhaust pipe. I have a video somewhere of the people that was under the front of our yard shooting water from the neighborhood drainage system 6 feet into the air. It was without a doubt the scariest storm we ever experienced while living in that house — lots of rain and lots of water.

But the turtles were investing. The other type of turtle in the pond is a larger and significantly more dangerous Aligator Snapping turtle. You are best served to avoid those if you don’t understand them. Many are very good at catching them, but if you don’t understand how powerful their jaws are it is best to stay away. They can easily snap a stick that is thicker than the bones in your arm! The mud turtles don’t bite unless pushed way too far. But they also are much slower than the Snapping Turtle. They also seldom come out of the theater. The Alligator Snapping turtles did often come out of the water, mostly in our neighbor’s yard, that had a much more friendly slope than our yard did.

lots of great outdoor stuff!