Warm Up — 30 April 2001A southwest breeze bathed the Land of Ooze with refreshing warmth. Blue skies and lazy clouds painted Wellfleet Bay in springtime hues. Still, few turtles have emerged from brumation. But with a string of 70°F days in the immediate forecast, it’s only a matter of time. One hazard surprised me as I waded the creek. So many pairs of mating horseshoe crabs have gathered in the low tide rip that it has converted the rapids into a virtual minefield.
Two male terrapins floated through the rip this morning. Number 1052 came first; an 8-year-old with perfectly pristine carapace and plastron, he tipped the scales at 222 grams and stretched to 11 centimeters long.
A few minutes later a repeat customer swam into view. Terrapin 1047, you may recall, was first observed a week ago on 23 April in the first group of turtles seen active in 2001. In the last week, he seems to have warmed up a lot and has become quite active and aggressive.
He lost 4 grams in weight with his shell peeling off its winter covering.
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