April 12, 2009 - Painted Turtles

Welcome to the Nature Notebook.

Rising from the dark depths of a pond into the warming April sun is Pennsylvania’s most common turtle. The painted turtle is one of our first reptiles to come out of winter hibernation and is sometimes sunning on a warm day in late March. After overwintering buried in the cold mud at the bottom of a pond, painted turtles emerge to enjoy their two favorite activities: eating and basking. Periods of warming on the shore, a log or rock are interspersed with foraging for food in the water. A prime basking spot this time of year will be covered with painted turtles taking advantage of the sun’s warmth. Turtles can be stacked two or even three high at times, scrambling over each other as they shift to regulate their body temperature and quickly slipping into the water when they sense danger.

This is PPL's naturalist, Jon Beam, with the Nature Notebook for WVIA.