For about two weeks, we’ve been seeing these two Painted Turtles basking in our pond on warmer days. They’re apparently male. (Males have longer, wider-based tails; females have thin stubs.) If history is prologue, these two soon will be joined by three or four additional male and female summer painters to form a “bale” of basking turtles.
Painted Turtles are shy and gentle creatures; they scrabble off their rock if anyone or anything gets close. When alone and at the right time, the male asks the female the important question by stroking her face with his front claw; if she agrees, they’ll disappear into the depths of the pond and mate. Soon thereafter, she’ll climb up into our North Field, make her nest, lay her eggs, and return to the pond while the eggs 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)