Photography has been a little slow for the past few days, though this is also due to my own lack of effort. Still, things occasionally pop up.
Take, for instance, the conditions on the pond a week ago today:
… versus today:
Seriously.
These guys (which would be yellow-bellied sliders, Trachemys scripta scripta, and eastern painted turtles, Chrysemys picta picta,) wasted no time when the temperature got up above 18°c today, even though lower portions of the pond still have some slushy ice. Having grown up in central New York, I still can’t get over how North Carolina winters behave, as indecisive as a squirrel in the street. Mind you, I’m not complaining about being out today without even a sweater on, but you know, if you’re going to take a two-week trip to NC during January, well, pack everything.
I have to show you a close crop of the above frame:
Just the reflection in the water in front of the tussock, where you can see the details of the turtles quite well. The way the pond is, even with a stiff wind it doesn’t have too many open stretches which would show distinct rippling, but still, that’s not too shabby. Come spring (which may be the weekend, dunno,) the various pond plants and algae will get a toehold and the surface will be much more obscured – it’ll be interesting cataloging the changes that the pond goes through during the year.