On Tuesday, my co-workers and I took a field trip to one of our Audubon sanctuaries - Farm Creek Marsh. As we were mucking through the marsh we found this little one (most likely a little gal). She was trudging through the Spartina patens, Saltmeadow hay, of the salt marsh.
This was the very first time that I have spotted a Spotted Turtle, Clemmys guttata, in the wild and alive.
As it was a surprise to find a living Spotted Turtle, it was more of a surprise to find one in a salt marsh. That is until I found this bit of information:
Spotted Turtles are most active in cooler months, emerging from hibernation before other turtles. They travel between habitats as throughout the season. A turtle might hibernate in a tussock marsh; in spring travel to a vernal pool to feed and mate; in summer become mostly terrestrial, and in the autumn return to the marsh.
More facts about the Spotted Turtle can be found here.
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