Herpetofauna: One Life's List

Trachemys scripta scripta
Yellowbellied Slider

Rockingham, North Carolina
May 22, 1998

I'd like to say my first Yellow Belly was a thrilling capture, but the truth of it was, it had a bum leg, and couldn't outrun us when we surprised it a small distance away from water.  Like Red Eared Sliders, these turtles turn up in the darnedest places - crossing roads far from water, for one example.  This female was found between a set of railroad tracks in northern Florida, far from any water.