Sunbathing Terrapins Reflected Metal Print

metal prints turtle metal prints wildlife metal prints nature metal prints reptile metal prints shell metal prints

photographs turtle photos wildlife photos nature photos reptile photos shell photos

Fine art wildlife photograph capturing a Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) sunbathing on a log beside a native Western Pond Turtle (Actinemys marmorata or Emys marmorata). The turtles, and their glassy reflections, seem to delight in the companionable peace of a sunny winter afternoon.

Because they are poikilotherms, these reptiles are unable to regulate their body temperature so they depend on sunbathing to maintain body warmth. In colder winter climates they brumate, rather than hibernate, usually by sinking to the bottom of a pond where they enter a state of sopor until they can re-emerge in the warmth of spring.

Prior to 1975 when the FDA restricted the sale of Red-eared Sliders, they were the most common species of turtle sold in the pet trade. Over the years a great number of them have escaped or have been released in the wild where they have begun to outcompete native species in some areas. As a result, the International Union for Conservation of N...

I'm a native coastal Californian transplanted to the foothills of the Cascades. Being near the mountains has afforded me the opportunity to become attuned to seasonal rhythms and infuse that sense of time and place into my nature photography. I love to take off on roads less traveled, especially when it means losing myself in some remote place until I feel like being found. My portfolio includes natural landscapes, wildlife portraits, botanical macros, vintage architecture, cool geological formations, ranch life and a sprinkling of eccentric oddities that captured my imagination. I invite you to take a moment to peruse my galleries and follow me on Twitter: @EclecticImages. I hope you'll find something that makes you smile! .