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| My peninsula cooters and Florida softshells in the backyard pond have competition for the food pellets I give them several times per week. Here's one of the monstrosities swiping a pellet practically out of the mouth of a big female cooter that comes to be fed every time. Recognize the beast? It's an alien. 
Does anyone else on the forum have wild herps that can be counted on appearing at certain places or times on their property?
********************* Bill Love / BLUE CHAMELEON VENTURES
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Scary!
Well, there's a big lake in the middle of Research Park at A&M, and it's chock-full of Red-ears, Western Spinies, and Painteds. It has some Ambystomids, tigers and marbles I think. And some ducks, short spined catfish, some type of minnows, and tons of insect larvae. In one of the levels of the lake, you can literally net turtles with a butterfly net, there's just so many, and small.
Here are two pictures of a Western softshell.
 
Rest in Peace Odin!!! Your life may have not meant anything to those that abused you; but you meant everything to me. You will be missed my little friend.
2.2 Savannah Monitors (Loki, Freya, Saga, Thor)
0.1 Albino California Kingsnake (Rin)
1.0 California Aberrant Kingsnake (Haku)
1.1 Three-toed Box Turtles (Bowser, Genba)
1.0 Red-Ear Slider (Iggy)
0.1 Snow Corn Snake (Sakura)
0.1 Sulcata Tortoise (Casca)
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| I've got softshells in my pond too -- Florida softshells Apalone ferox --in fact, more of them than peninsula cooters like in the first pic with the walking catfish surfacing next to it. Here are more pond turtle pics I took just this afternoon (July 18th) laying on my belly on my backyard dock. With all the recent rain, the water level is almost level with the dock, so my elbows are practically in the water as I was shooting these close-ups. 
This last one, an almost mature male about 10 - 11 inches long, has had bright pinkish-orange lines on its head since it appeared as a hatchling several years ago. 
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Bill Love / BLUE CHAMELEON VENTURES
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Bill Love (7/11/2008)
My peninsula cooters and Florida softshells in the backyard pond have competition for the food pellets I give them several times per week. Here's one of the monstrosities swiping a pellet practically out of the mouth of a big female cooter that comes to be fed every time. Recognize the beast? It's an alien.
Does anyone else on the forum have wild herps that can be counted on appearing at certain places or times on their property? OMG what is that grey thing in the pond!?  
Anoles are like icecream.They can be sweet but,will give you brain freeze with all their strange behaviors.  All is fair in love and war.-anonymous Click on the eggs to help them hatch! 
My Pets 0.1 Dalmation/Beagle mix dog(Maggie) 0.1 Leopard Gecko(Freckles)
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That 'gray thing' is the face of a walking catfish, an exotic from Asia that's been established in Florida waterways for many decades. They 'walked' into my pond within a few years of it being dug and have lived here ever since. I even see an occasional albino show up, but most are the natural gray. They almost resemble tiny nurse sharks (if you let your imagination wander a little).  Here's another shot of one stealing food from in front of my 'pink-headed' softshell. That light, round thing is a floating fish food pellet.... 
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Bill Love / BLUE CHAMELEON VENTURES
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From that last picture it looks like a Ictalurus punctatus. Refering to the catfish
Current Collection
1.0 Rhacodactylus Ciliatus (Atua)
R.I.P.
Rhacodactylus Ciliatus (Bottecelli)
Aphonopelma eutylenum(Grape)
"Why, our descendants will ask, by needlessly extinguishing lives of other species, did we permanently impoverish our own?"
-E.O. Wilson
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Or a Spotted Catfish.
Current Collection
1.0 Rhacodactylus Ciliatus (Atua)
R.I.P.
Rhacodactylus Ciliatus (Bottecelli)
Aphonopelma eutylenum(Grape)
"Why, our descendants will ask, by needlessly extinguishing lives of other species, did we permanently impoverish our own?"
-E.O. Wilson
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Average Member
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Last Login: 11/12/2008 4:33:27 AM
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Bill Love (7/20/2008)
That 'gray thing' is the face of a walking catfish, an exotic from Asia that's been established in Florida waterways for many decades. They 'walked' into my pond within a few years of it being dug and have lived here ever since. I even see an occasional albino show up, but most are the natural gray. They almost resemble tiny nurse sharks (if you let your imagination wander a little). Oh.In the picture you just put up it looked like a catfish but,in the first one it looked like aliens were invading earth and stealing our turtles. It does look a little like a nurse shark!
Anoles are like icecream.They can be sweet but,will give you brain freeze with all their strange behaviors. All is fair in love and war.-anonymous Click on the eggs to help them hatch!
My Pets 0.1 Dalmation/Beagle mix dog(Maggie) 0.1 Leopard Gecko(Freckles)
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