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 IKK_Kritters005:  Herb's pride and joy, Nicki!!! What a handsom friend.
 

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IKK_Kritters006: For what it's worth - here is one of the critters. Actually this and other turtle that I have roaming around in the back yard are originally from IL and MO. Enjoy - JIP

Kritters_Korner_Story:
by: Jim Poore
~ This turtle came from Calhoun County, IL, along with a number of other turtles. I brought them back to NM to rid my yard and garden of snails and slugs. They did a very good job in short order. Now about 5 years later, I haven't seen a snail or slug on my property for the past 3 years. I have about 20 turtles counting the offspring. The baby turtles are about the size of a nickel when first observed moving about, so one has to be careful when moving around, especially when mowing the lawn.
~ My back yard is enclosed with a block wall with a concrete footing about 2 feet below the ground surface. In the autumn, the turtles dig in for the winter. hibernate for 5 to 6 months, then come out after the night time low temperature is 55 to 60 degrees. They roam around at will, most of them will come to the back door and beg for food - they love melons of all types, even eat lunch meat and cheese.
~ These turtles are of the "box" type. The females usually have very red eyes, whereas the males have dark eyes. Their age can be determined by counting the rings on their shell, similar to determining the age of a tree by counting the rings. If you look closely, you can see the rings. I have a couple that are over 50 years old, the one pictured is about 18 years old.
~ The turtles are not named, but at one time, I numbered them with white paint so that I could see which ones were still around from year to year and how they moved about. This paint is mostly worn off due to their movement through the bushes, and burrowing beneath the ground. They go underground each evening and come out when the sun has warmed things up a bit.
~ I wasn't sure whether they would survive in this altitude. as they were coming from a few hundred feet above sea level to well over 5100 feet. Our city varies in elevation from around 4900 feet to over 7000 feet above sea level. I did lose a couple of the "Kritters", but those were ones that had been injured (probably hit by autos on the road.)
~ All in all, no maintenance is required, they don't bother anyone, they are quiet, and a great conversational subject when we have visitors.
That's about it - Have fun - JIP


JIM's TURTLE UPDATE ~ June 24, 2002
The turtles are doing fine - coming to the back door and begging for
food. Been feeding them melons but they really like frozen hamburger
meat (diced up in 1" cubes). They are not out much during the hot part
of the day (been having 98 to 100 degrees with low humidity in late
afternoon). During this time of day, they normally burrow beneath the
ground to keep cool. One of my favorite turtles has not been seen thus
far this year - don't know whether he got out, died or just being
elusive as most turtle are. Counting babies, have estimated about 20
plus at this time. Good pets, quiet, low maintenance, and good
conversation subject while having visitors. JIP