Thursday, December 20, 2012

Greeted by an Osprey

Thursday, December 20, 2012

One of the osprey greeted me when I arrived at the River yesterday. It only circled once before flying off upstream, so I was only able to get a few photos of it. Numerous slider turtles* were out on the rocks basking in the warmth of the sun. Slider turtles seem to be social in nature, as they do tend to gather in groups when they are sunning themselves. And a couple of snowy egrets were finding plenty to eat at the top of a riffle:











* There are at least three species of slider turtles. I have read that all red-eared slider turtles have the red streak on their head. That is what defines the species. Quite a few of the slider turtles in Bexar County do not have the red streak, but otherwise appear to be red-eared sliders. One of the species is a yellow slider, but they apparently don't live this far west. When I get an opportunity to discuss this with a herpetologist, perhaps I'll be able to clarify exactly what the turtles without the red streak are.

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