Backyard Series #30

Michigan Michael · Post by **Michigan Michael** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 4:16 pm

Turtle, tortoise or terrapin? A prehistoric looking fellow.

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 6:41 pm

I photographed one of these about a year ago. I wish I had done a little more with it while it was around in the yard. A very nice and sharp image here Michael and good composition too.

JoanYoung · Post by **JoanYoung** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 7:01 pm

Our distinction is:

Tortoise = on land
Turtle = in the sea
Terrapin = in fresh water

The last two have flat shells for swimming and the first a higher domed shell.

I cannot see the shell here but it look like a tortoise to me. Very good shot of it Michael!!

Michigan Michael · Post by **Michigan Michael** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 1:59 pm

Thanks, Ken and Joan.

And Joan, you were correct. It is a tortoise.
I took this through glass a few days ago at the Detroit Zoo (which is right in my "backyard"). To find out what it was, I went back there again, today and I found this information.

beetleman · Post by **beetleman** » Thu Jan 31, 2008 2:03 pm

A wonderful photo Michael. The face looks like a Tortoise. Wikipedia has a short say on the different usage of these words Between the USA & UK

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrapin

Michigan Michael · Post by **Michigan Michael** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 12:43 pm

Thanks for the comment and the info, Doug.

JoanYoung · Post by **JoanYoung** » Mon Feb 04, 2008 7:36 pm

That is a beautiful tortoise Michael. Thanks for the additional info on it. It is too bad that so many of them are becoming rare due to vegetation loss.

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 4:58 am

This brings to mind that as the worlds population increases, so does mans encroachment on nature and wildlife habitats. The disappearance of not only our nations wetlands but of others in the world as well, are of great importance, along with the life that lives within them, just to name one other environmental tradgedy aside from that of the tortise. Though I will not be around 100 yrs. from now and neither will a lot of us

I shudder to think what the world may be like or become.

Maybe something akin to a protozoa collection. One day the jar is full, with organisms to vast to count and then the next, what was once a teeming population of organisms has now vanished, their environment to ravaged by their great numbers to support them all. That is a pretty bleak outlook for our childrens, children.