Here we see the first Painted Turtle to resurrect itself from the muddy tombs at the bottom of our pond. She appeared yesterday. If history is prologue, she’ll soon be joined by three or four male and female summer painters to form a “bale” of basking turtles.
She’ll eventually accept a male’s gentle suggestion, dive with him into the pond depths, mate, and return to the surface to wait for a sensation. When she gets that sensation, she’ll climb up into our North Field, make her nest, lay her eggs, and return to the pond while they incubate.
If the raccoons, skunks, coyotes, and crows don’t find the eggs, some of the hatchlings may come back to our pond; others will look elsewhere for a summer place with a water view. (Brooklin, Maine)