To record all the species in and immediately around the University of Texas at Austin turtle pond. Also, to record specific turtles with notable features/defects (i.e. the one with the bone-disease-altered shell, the one with a piece missing, the oddly orange red-eared slider) and the growth of the smallest babies.
For anyone concerned:
The turtle with the missing shell chunk was likely hit by a car or lawnmower, but is doing well. It was injured in approximately August 2018 and shows no signs of pain or infection as of October 2018.
The turtle with the badly upturned shell edges is an older, stunted male red-eared slider turned dark due to natural pigmentation increases. It was kept in improper lighting until it acquired a metabolic bone disease, which affected its shell growth. The disease should be gone now that it is under sunlight, but the shell will never recover and the turtle will likely never grow.
I would love to know what caused the strange body shape of the red-eared slider with the helmet-shaped shell. It seems healthy otherwise. I suspect a hormone issue. less ↑