Tuesday, April 6, 2021

Texas River Cooter

We visited the Upper Falls of McKinney Falls State Park, outside of Austin, and watched a single turtle on a large slab of rock sticking out of the water very near the falls. Then a second turtle appeared, then a third, a fourth, a fifth, they just kept coming, until there were eight turtles all bunched up together on that rock, some crawling over each other. 

The Texas river cooter is a freshwater turtle endemic to the State of Texas. It is found in six river basins, including the Colorado River Basin, where we were. 
It is green with yellow and black markings that fade with age. Males have longer tails, longer claws and smaller size. 

I've never been around turtles and so I am fascinated by them. 

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