Flashback: baby turtle

When I posted about the turtles mating in my garden last week, I was asked if I'd ever seen baby turtles in my garden. My response was "no", but I've found photographic evidence that I was mistaken.

To be clear though, back in July 2000 when these photos were taken I did not have a garden, just a regular suburban yard with lawn, trees, and a couple of shrubs. I still saw turtles even back then -- I suppose it was much easier to spot them without all of the pesky plants getting in the way.

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It was my stepson that found this, and we made sure to document it with my ancient digital camera.

How about a grape?

Or some cantaloupe?

Yes please!

I'm not liking this too much...

Is this a 2-year old turtle?

...but I'm young and resilient.

Since box turtles can live 50 years or more, this could be one of the mature turtles I've just seen!

From Wikipedia:

Once maturity is reached, the chance of death seems not to increase with age. The survivorship curve of box turtles is therefore probably similar to that of other long-living turtles. The average life span of adult box turtles is 50 years, while a significant portion lives over 100 years. The age of a growing box turtle in the wild can be roughly estimated by counting the growth rings on the scutes; the plastron is the best place to do this because it also allows examination of wear pattern. However, the rate of 1 ring per growth season has not been fully confirmed, and estimates beyond 20 years are unreliable because the scutes is usually worn smooth.

I still want to see a baby or young turtle now, at the very least to get some photos with a modern camera. A newborn would be the absolute best find...

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