Mmmm, Soft!

Here's a fellow I don't think you've ever seen here at the blog before. This is a soft-shelled turtle. They're pretty common around here, showing up in just about any pond that's big enough to stay wet for a period of time. I shot this fellow when someone else found him wandering across a parking lot in the opposite direction of the nearest water. His hole must have dried up and he was looking for a new place to reside. So this guy was steering him towards the nearest pond, I saw what was going on and naturally I grabbed my camera and ran alongside to get a picture. About 5 seconds after this picture, the turtle got a sniff of the nearby water and started moving much faster than you might think a turtle could in that direction. Fifteen seconds after I took this picture, he was gone. We saw him a short time later, swimming back and forth in the pond, with his neck fully extended (probably a foot long!), enjoying the luxuries of his new domicile. Oh, and did I mention he bites? He bites hard. That's why you see him on the ground and not getting carried towards the new pond.