Eastern Musk Turtles

I met some turtles last spring that I don't see a lot: Eastern Musk Turtles. There were a few individuals lying around; these were 2 of the better pictures that I got. These turtles don't bask very often, and both of these seemed to be pulling the old Common Snapping Turtle trick of quasi-basking half in and half out of the water. I suspect they were only basking this much because it was still early May and they needed the extra sunlight to shake off their winter dormancy.

Most of you probably would have found these turtles easier than I did since they're considered to be a smelly turtle [1], indicated both by the "musk" part of their name and their "stinkpot" nickname.

Musk turtles and mud turtles are different types of turtle, but are in the same family. I encounter mud turtles even less frequently than their musky cousins.

May 10, 2023 at Delaware Raritan Canal
Photo 282315053, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

May 10, 2023 at Delaware Raritan Canal
Photo 282315478, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

[1] As many of you know, I have almost no sense of smell, and so it's not surprising that I failed to smell anything unusual, let alone bad.

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