﻿356 
  BABCOCK: 
  NEW 
  ENGLAND 
  TURTLES. 
  

  

  "She 
  was 
  laying 
  her 
  course, 
  I 
  thought, 
  straight 
  down 
  the 
  length 
  of 
  this 
  dreadful 
  pasture, 
  

   when, 
  not 
  far 
  from 
  the 
  fence, 
  she 
  suddenly 
  hove 
  to, 
  warped 
  herself 
  short 
  about, 
  and 
  came 
  

   back, 
  barely 
  clearing 
  me, 
  at 
  a 
  cUp 
  that 
  was 
  thrilhng. 
  I 
  warped 
  about, 
  too, 
  and 
  in 
  her 
  wake 
  

   bore 
  down 
  across 
  the 
  corner 
  of 
  the 
  pasture, 
  across 
  the 
  powdery 
  pubhc 
  road, 
  and 
  on 
  to 
  a 
  fence 
  

   along 
  a 
  field 
  of 
  young 
  corn. 
  

  

  "I 
  was 
  somewhat 
  wet 
  by 
  this 
  time, 
  but 
  not 
  so 
  wet 
  as 
  I 
  had 
  been 
  before 
  wallowing 
  through 
  

   the 
  deep, 
  dry 
  dust 
  of 
  the 
  road. 
  Hurrjdng 
  up 
  behind 
  a 
  large 
  tree 
  by 
  the 
  fence, 
  I 
  peered 
  down 
  

   the 
  corn-rowp 
  and 
  saw 
  the 
  turtle 
  stop, 
  and 
  begin 
  to 
  paw 
  about 
  in 
  the 
  loose 
  soft 
  soU. 
  She 
  was 
  

   going 
  to 
  lay. 
  

  

  "I 
  held 
  on 
  to 
  the 
  tree 
  and 
  watched, 
  as 
  she 
  tried 
  this 
  place, 
  and 
  that 
  place, 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  

   place 
  — 
  the 
  eternally 
  feminine. 
  But 
  the 
  place, 
  evidently, 
  was 
  hard 
  to 
  find. 
  What 
  could 
  a 
  

   female 
  turtle 
  do 
  with 
  a 
  whole 
  field 
  of 
  possible 
  nests 
  to 
  choose 
  from? 
  Then 
  at 
  last 
  she 
  found 
  

   it, 
  and 
  whirMng 
  about, 
  she 
  backed 
  quickly 
  at 
  it, 
  and, 
  tail 
  first, 
  began 
  to 
  bury 
  herself 
  before 
  

   my 
  staring 
  eyes." 
  

  

  Agassiz 
  also 
  recorded 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  Snapping 
  Turtle 
  always 
  lays 
  its 
  eggs 
  (in 
  this 
  region) 
  

   in 
  the 
  morning 
  from 
  four 
  till 
  twelve 
  mid-day. 
  My 
  observations 
  have 
  coincided 
  with 
  this 
  

   statement. 
  The 
  nests 
  are 
  sometimes 
  made 
  in 
  unexpected 
  locations. 
  Several 
  years 
  ago, 
  one 
  

   June 
  morning 
  (June 
  19) 
  I 
  came 
  upon 
  a 
  female 
  Snapper 
  in 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  a 
  sandy, 
  country 
  road, 
  

   in 
  the 
  act 
  of 
  depositing 
  her 
  eggs. 
  She 
  seemed 
  wholly 
  unconscious 
  of 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  intruders, 
  

   even 
  when 
  my 
  dog 
  approached 
  and 
  sniffed 
  at 
  her. 
  On 
  being 
  removed 
  from 
  the 
  nest, 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  her 
  attitude 
  immediately 
  changed 
  to 
  uncontrollable 
  viciousness, 
  snapping 
  with 
  a 
  force 
  

   that 
  brought 
  the 
  whole 
  body 
  into 
  play. 
  The 
  nest 
  was 
  about 
  62 
  inches 
  deep, 
  expanded 
  at 
  the 
  

   bottom 
  and 
  to 
  one 
  side, 
  and 
  contained 
  twenty-eight 
  roughly 
  spherical 
  eggs. 
  These 
  averaged 
  

   seven-eighths 
  of 
  an 
  inch 
  in 
  diameter. 
  The 
  shell 
  was 
  thin, 
  fairly 
  tough, 
  but 
  pliable. 
  The 
  eggs 
  

   were 
  in 
  one 
  group, 
  not 
  separated 
  by 
  layers 
  of 
  earth. 
  

  

  Habits. 
  — 
  These 
  turtles 
  inhabit 
  stagnant 
  pools 
  and 
  sluggish 
  streams. 
  They 
  are 
  almost 
  

   entirely 
  aquatic. 
  When 
  in 
  need 
  of 
  oxygen 
  they 
  approach 
  the 
  surface 
  and 
  float 
  about 
  with 
  

   only 
  the 
  nostrils 
  visible. 
  They 
  are 
  not 
  confined 
  to 
  fresh-water 
  streams 
  and 
  marshes, 
  for 
  I 
  

   have 
  taken 
  several 
  indi\'iduals 
  in 
  salt 
  marshes 
  on 
  Cape 
  Cod 
  and 
  recently 
  received 
  a 
  young 
  

   animal 
  which 
  was 
  taken 
  while 
  swimming 
  in 
  Buzzards 
  Bay. 
  The 
  carapace 
  of 
  this 
  turtle 
  was 
  

   distinctly 
  green 
  in 
  color. 
  Much 
  of 
  their 
  time 
  is 
  spent 
  partially 
  submerged 
  in 
  mud, 
  on 
  the 
  

   bottom 
  of 
  the 
  pond 
  or 
  stream, 
  in 
  which 
  position, 
  especially 
  when 
  the 
  carapace 
  is 
  coated 
  with 
  

   green 
  algae, 
  they 
  so 
  resemble 
  their 
  environment 
  that 
  the 
  capture 
  of 
  small 
  fish 
  and 
  other 
  aquatic 
  

   forms 
  is 
  accomplished 
  readily 
  by 
  a 
  lightning 
  thrust 
  of 
  their 
  head. 
  Because 
  of 
  the 
  strength 
  

   of 
  jaw 
  muscles, 
  sharpness 
  of 
  mandibles, 
  and 
  rapidity 
  of 
  head 
  motion, 
  these 
  animals, 
  especially 
  

   adults, 
  are 
  dangerous 
  to 
  handle, 
  being 
  capable 
  of 
  inflicting 
  severe 
  wounds, 
  but 
  they 
  can 
  be 
  

   safely 
  carried 
  by 
  the 
  tail. 
  The 
  following 
  description 
  of 
  its 
  vicious 
  behavior 
  is 
  from 
  an 
  old 
  

  

  