Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens in June 2017 – Turtles

We saw two turtles on our visit to Kenilworth Gardens last week. They were sunning themselves on the same log sticking up from the muck of one of the water lily ponds. At first, I thought they were the same kind of turtle.

But then I took a closer look by increasing the zoom of my camera. The markings on their heads were not the same.

The larger one had a lot of red along the side but the shell was covered with gunk from the water. It probably was a Northern Red-bellied cooter.

The smaller turtle had a dark shell – even on the sides. There was a little red on the neck. Not sure what kind of turtle it was....maybe a juvenile so didn't have all the adult markings yet.

They both seemed to be enjoying the sunshine and I was far enough away to not startle them…no plops back into the water while we photographed them.

Previous posts about this visit: insects, water lilies, birds, lotus.

A Walk Around Josey Ranch Lake – May 2017

I was in Carrollton, Texas last week and walked around the lake at Josey Ranch. This is the third time for this year (January and March posts). The coots, lesser scaup, and northern shovelers that were there during the earlier visits have left for their nest grounds in the north. There seemed to be even more Great-Tailed Grackles and I realized how different the females look than the males. My favorite picture was of a pair that were probably giving me the eye…keeping me clear of their nest.

The Desert Willow was in bloom.

The thistles were blooming in almost all the unmowed places around the lake.

Butterfly bush seems to be a favored planting and seems to be mostly contained my mowing except for this one near the bridge. It probably was not planted there.

People bring bread to leave for the birds. Sometimes there is a lot on the grass even after the people leave. The pigeons, grackles, and mute swans seems to be the biggest feeders. The ducks seem to prefer other food although they check the bread periodically.

The Mallard ducklings are about as large as the parents. In the picture below, the mother has orange in her beak…the others are her brood. The father was strutting between me and the group in the photo.

There were three turtles on a log. I thought they were all the same until I got home and looked at them on a larger screen. Two are red-eared sliders. The third one had so much mud and algae on its back that the shell pattern is hard to see; not sure what it is…but definitely not a red-eared slider.

Gleanings of the Week Ending February 25, 2017

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Busy Bees: Patterns of pollen and nectar foraging specialization by bumblebees over multiple timescales using RFID – At the top of my list this week…the paper (link is at the bottom of this post), is authored by my son-in-law and daughter!

Automatically darkening windows in a wide range of colors – Maybe insulating drapes will not be needed in the future…although I like the idea of windows that generate power rather than just changing color.

From Vector to Zoonotic: A Glossary for Infectious Diseases – Some of these words are used in news stories without definition….how strong is your knowledge of what they really mean?

How Blizzards and Extreme Cold Impact Birds – We haven’t had any extreme cold in our area this winter….but it may be happening somewhere. This article talks about the studies about how birds cope with the cold; some succumb to the cold itself and some starve because their food source becomes unavailable.

Why Killer Viruses are on the Rise – An outcome of our increasing impact on environments that previously were wildlife habitats.

Winning images of the Underwater Photography of the Year Contest – Eye candy…but educational too.

NASA’s Osiris REx takes its first image of Jupiter – We saw Osiris REx launched last September so I always take a look at any new news about it.

Torpid Turtles, Tortoises, and Terrapins – Examples from turtles in the US…several are common enough in Maryland that I’ve seen them.

The oldest grave of the Netherlands, “Trijntje” – A facial reconstruction of a woman buried 7500 years ago.

The Feather Atlas – A feather reference. I hope I remember this exists the next time I find an interesting feather!