Author Archives: John S. Quarterman

Turtle or tortoise? 2024-06-05

I can’t find a turtle species that quite matches this reptile crossing the road. But the yellow inside shell isn’t like a gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus).

[Turtle or tortoise?]
Turtle or tortoise?

So what is it? Tortoise or turtle? And if turtle, what kind?

I set it on the other side towards where it was going. It hissed at me. Continue reading →

River escapes 2024-06-02

River got a little too ornery the other night, so I put her in the pen. By the time I was back in the house, she was outside the house door.

I tried again, making sure the pen door was latched. She did it again.

We guessed she either climbed over the six-foot fence, or stuck her nose under and lifted up the pen.

[Movie: Circus dog River (77M)]
Movie: Circus dog River (77M)

So yesterday we tried in daylight with video.

We were all wrong.

Here’s the video:
https://youtu.be/VbZJksraIgA Continue reading →

Blueberry Scacrecrow 2024-05-24

This scarecrow in the blueberries seems to be working. We’re actually getting some blueberries before the birds do.

[Scarecrow and scaresnake in the blueberries]
Scarecrow and scaresnake in the blueberries

And here’s a better view of the scaresnake. It has since disappeared. Didn’t seem to blow off, since it would be nearby, and it isn’t. We guess a buzzard thought it would be a treat. Continue reading →

Halberd-leaved rose mallow 2024-05-27

It’s summer when we see this flower. Each bloom lasts one day.

[Halberd-leaved Rose Mallow]
Halberd-leaved Rose Mallow

But each halberd-leaved rose mallow plant has many blooms of Hibiscus laevis.

The plant likes wet soils, but this one is in the middle of upland piney woods.

-jsq

Okra, Squash, Scarecrow 2024-05-27

Update 2024-05-30: Blueberry Scacrecrow 2024-05-24.

Maybe the scarecrow will keep the critters off the okra and the yellow squash.

[Okra, squash, scarecrow]
Okra, squash, scarecrow

Also known as straightneck squash, the Abelmoschus esculentus is producing quite a bit.

The okra, Abelmoschus esculentus, hasn’t bloomed yet, but maybe it will soon.

Got a few more taters to dig, too, adding to the many we already dug.

-jsq

Turtle in road 2024-05-24

This turtle was in the middle of the road as I drove home. It was in Quarterman Road, near Redeye Creek, which runs to the Withlacoochee River.

[Turtle in road and on the other side]
Turtle in road and on the other side

So I carried it to the other side. It was about a foot long.

What kind of turtle is it?

My guess is river cooter, Pseudemys concinna.

Could be the subspecies Suwannee cooter, Pseudemys concinna suwanniensis. Or the subspecies Eastern river cooter, Pseudemys concinna concinna first described by my cousin John Eatton LeConte Jr. in 1830.

Or maybe a Florida cooter or some other species.

What do you think? Continue reading →