Posted: Wed Apr 05, 2017 10:56 am Re: Found turtle question
I've spent a lot of time at the creek over the past 4 decades, and never seen one. That's not to say there aren't any there for sure, but I've never seen one or evidence of one there. Just box turtles up in the dryer areas. There are a couple of ponds on nearby properties, but they are a fair distance from us. We are deep in the country and have lots of predators. I'm sure I have a photo of my original 3, so I'll see about comparing them. This one looks more like the one I had than the first one I found, though! I have an enclosure (about 15' x 12') with a solid pond liner buried in the ground so they can get in and out. I've planted kale and other plants they can eat, and they have places to hide if they feel the need. I've tried different set-ups, including a 1,000 gallon intex pool with a homemade "island." It was impossible to keep clean enough for them and didn't have dirt for egg-laying. This pond liner is 160 gallons. I might add another one and enlarge the area if this works out. It's been 10 years of researching and trying to make the best environment possible for them. I put them together yesterday and checked periodically. No aggression so far, though I'll keep a close eye on them. They pretty much ignored each other.