Turtle Misidentification
Whoops! It turns out that the little guys below are actually the Eastern Painted Turtle - notably not an invasive species like the slider, with a daily routine of waking up, sunning (basking), then eating a bit, then more basking, another round of eating, then basking until nightfall, whereupon they sink to the bottom of the lake and sleep. Sounds like the species I'm watching daily are in fact the least studied (the Eastern Painted Turtle) because they're so difficult to catch, and because the populations vary wildly from 10 to 840 turtles per hectare. Apparently it depends on basking space and how clear the water is. They've also been known to bask on nearly anything, including (very tolerant) nesting birds! So kind of neat. Maybe I'll make some kind of wild discovery that will usher me into the hallowed halls of Turtle Tamers everywhere.