Turtle Thursday with Friends

Looks like I have lots of turtles and a few other critters to post for #turtlethursday

I took a walk around the lake mid-day and the first thing I saw was a baby muskrat swimming around eating various reeds and grasses. I was hoping it was a beaver as they are around here too but it was just a more common muskrat.

Meanwhile in the background the turtles were covering the floating islands.

Looks like a huge carp kicked the bucket, now the turtle can sun a while on the floating islands then dive down and get a free carp lunch...

This poor duck has to share the island with the turtles as he and his mate have a nest here.

He jumped off and swam around the turtles to assess if they were a threat. Or maybe he thought he could scare them off the edge for a while if he jumped off into the water. The turtle didn't budge as they know ducks aren't a threat.

The turtles are too busy absorbing sun rays to help make calcium for their shells. I see red eared sliders here and a couple painted turtles.

This side of the island only had painted turtles, perhaps they are having a feud with the red eared sliders.

Meanwhile the red-winged blackbird is eyeing me taking photos of the turtles. He is defensive of his territory and doesn't like visitors. They will sometimes even peck your head if they are feeling brave. I like them because they are always posing for photos.

Here's a song sparrow, I finally was able to get a closeup shot of one. I usually hear them and see them off in the distance and they fly away when I try to get a closer shot. This one wasn't in a singing mood and was foraging for food.

That's all for now, more turtles and critters soon...