June 14th: Today we were very excited to find a spotted turtle in the yard. Every June they come to our backyard to nest. Whenever we find a spotted turtle we take a picture of the plastron (underneath shell) for identification. This little lady was first observed nesting on our property in 2005. In 2006 I was lucky to actually observe her laying 3 eggs. They all hatched in late September. Spotted Turtles reach sexual maturity between 7 to 10 years, and they can live to reach 30 years!
This is excellent! There is still a lot to learn about Spotted Turtles in Connecticut. They often use seasonal wetlands for breeding and these areas are disappearing at a quick rate in Fairfield & New Haven Counties. Seeing these girls laying on your property is a wonderful thing.
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