Of course, we saw none. We did see one Redback in the woods, though.
But that was it for quite a while.
We walked the paths along the bogs and were surprised by the lack of frogs and turtles. But as we moved along, the sun started to poke out and we knew it was just a matter of time. By the time we got to the turtle-heavy part from our last trip, it was shining and we finally saw this big Bullfrog.
A peek down the waterway revealed many turtles up, though just a fraction of the 70-100 that were visible on our last visit. But I still vowed to photograph as many Painted Turtles as possible. The trees and bushes presented some challenges but I got a few...
We interrupt this Painter fashion show to bring you a Spotted Turtle, the only one photographed of three seen on the day.
We now return to our regularly scheduled Painted Turtles.
Let's break things up with a couple of handsome Bullfrogs, shall we?
A couple of beautifully colored, if doofy-looking Green Frogs.
All the while, we'd been asking ourselves, "Where da snakes at?" This small Water Snake swam away from the shore, thus breaking our squamate seal.
While I was dicking around trying to photograph what turned out to be a sparrow I already had, Andrea was watching a pair of Water Snakes doin' it. The female was immense!
About 20 feet away, next to some dudes who were fishing, this horny couple (or so) were going at it.
This little Painter was selling tickets.
We're a happy family, we Mom and Dad.
A not great shot of a small Painter, but the photo-bombing adult is hilarious.
Andrea finally spied the elusive Turtle of Snap.
Pardon my French, but this is called a Water Snake Clusterfuck. At least a 4-pack.
A portrait of a non-horny Water Snake.
Back to Painters.
The tail of a single Water Snake, obviously looking for an orgy.
I saw some orange in a tree and heard a lovely call! Obviously, I had an Oriole in my sights. Checking out my picture, though, I though it was a pretty scraggly looking specimen. It turns out it is an Orchard Oriole, a new one for me. Lifer #189 (#44 on the year).
A tough as nails, ass-kicker of a Painted Turtle.
Swimmin' along, looking for a meal or an orgy. Water Snakes... so like us.
Another pile of twitchin' Nerodia love.
We were admittedly pretty toasty by this time. We'd done over 6 miles, much of it in the sun, and I needed a sit-down. While sitting on a rock, we saw this young Water Snake swimming out to an island clump.
We took a new path out of there and lurched our way to the car. After a slow start, it had turned out to be a pretty good day. Lots of shells, symphonies of croaking Bulls and Greens (very entertaining) and snake sex. I also added four birds to the 2020 count. Not too shabby.
Th-th-th-that's all folks.
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