There are turtles here, I think they are box turtles. Definitely dry land, but too big to be the Texas tortoise I think. They are very hard shelled, dark chocolate to black shell color, big front legs with scales, high domed carapice, can't remember if the plastron was hinged. They dig holes in my back garden outside the fence and something always gets their eggs even though the holes are over 6 inches deep.
Since the hurricane, this one turtle comes in the yard, I guess he/she squeezes under the fence. Bleu always finds it and promptly starts barking at it, chewing at it(shell is hard, no damage so far) and turns it over on it's back. I take it to the back of the property and release it. It comes back the next day. What is it wanting? The soft dirt of my gardens? Protection from what ever is eating their eggs? It can't be water, the resaca is at the back of the property and it's running full.
Is it a Box Turtle or a Tortoise? It has two prongs that stick out from the plastron in front. I meant to get a picture, but it was so upset it wet on me, so I gave it to the neighbor to release.
Turtle question
Oh how neet!!!! Dont have a clue about turtles, just wish we had more around here. I mother has had a few in her yard that have layed eggs. (She has 3 acres in Spring Tx.) Several weeks ago we went to her house and there was a turtle crossing the street going towards her yard. We stopped and I went to move the turtle out of the street to her yard. I picked it up, took about 4 steps....and it went on me. I was soaked, my kids were laughing so hard that they were about to fall over. I screamed and it went more. I stood in the shower fully dressed for 20 minutes laughing. I had no idea that they would do that if they were frightend or that they went so much. But now I know...I also know that next time I pick up a turtle, I will make sure its head is facing me and its back side is facing my girls...see how they like it.........
Good luck with your turtles
Kathy
Sounds like a box turtle to me (we have some as pets). I think we have some wild ones around, but not here in the city. I believe box turtles often roam the same few acres for their entire lives; maybe he just thinks your place is home for some reason...
Form what pictures I could fine, he/she is a Texas Tortoise, a protected species. Yes, they have their "territories" but I still don't know why he/she likes my yard because it's been fenced for years! Maybe it was a wee little hatchling back when the subdivision was a cow pasture.
Oh, ok. I'm glad you figured it out. I hope it works out ok. :)
I've caught one meandering thru my back garden before too. We are located on what I lovingly refer to as "The little house on the Katy Prairie". I guess it was a big box turtle since there is definitely not any water around here. I just let him meander about on his way and the next day he was gone. Basically I was just thankful it wasn't a snake!
Oh we have snakes, lol. The other day one crawled behind my hurricane shutters. Did I mention the gators?
Calalily--you are a braver soul than I! Both snakes and gators would have me running top speed for the house (and I bet really fast too even with a hip replacement last December!). You know all the folks that say they kill snakes with their hoes and shovels and stuff just amaze me. I'd be running to fast!
Debbie
Most of the snakes here are harmless, they eat bugs and mice so they can stay. We did kill a coral snake that came up on the patio. I saw a big rattle snake down by the resaca. I got the dog and got out of there fast! I called the neighbor, but we couldn't find it when we went back.
I always check the water for gators before I let the dogs out of the fence, don't want Bleu to be a gator snack!
Calalily, Having grown up around a bayou and catching them as pets, my friends and I found out that if the turtles were born in our backyard they ALWAYS returned to lay their eggs where they were born. Mother Nature does this with many animals.......if it was safe where you were born then it is safe for your offspring to be born. Checked this out a long time ago with the herpitologist at the zoo and he confirmed what we figured out long ago as kids.
Let her do her thing.
Kip
I bet that's what she was going to do. I found a hole at the back of my flowerbed, looks like the ones they dig to lay their eggs. It could have been hers, but no eggs were in it, Bleu probably disturbed her before she laid them.
So I guess that turtle was looking for that pond I used to have! Thanks for that info Kip...