The baby Snapper Turtles!

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(Edited)

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Told ya I'll get em! The last time I showed you the adults.
Now come and have a look at the babies!

At first there was one, then there were two,
see the second photo!

We were told that there are babies in the dam and today was almost ideal weather conditions to go and search for the babies. Slow and silent walks around the dam a couple of times looking for bubbles and movement was rewarded by finding a sheltered spot. The bubbles were there and all that we had to do was wait.
Marian saw the first baby and then I took the following shots!

Looked like a little brother and sister here!
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The dam is in a nature reserve on top of a mountain foothill!
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This was where Marian spotted the little guy!
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Cuteness overload! Look how small this little one is!
Sitting on a water flower leaf tanning in the sun!
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Oh! And I also took some other photos during the waiting time for the turtle babies to appear!

This is the biggest Dragonfly in our country!
The "Blue Emperor" (Anax imperator).
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"This dragonfly has a wide distribution; it is found throughout Africa and through most of Europe, the Arabian Peninsula, and south-western and central Asia. Since 2000, its range has expanded in Europe, both northwards and to higher altitudes.
The adult male is highly territorial, and difficult to approach."
Source
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A beautiful view over the farmed foothills of the mountains in the background!
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Now what is this here below?
It was near the center island in the dam and looking towards the right. Riffled scales on the back of its head!
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At this stage I have no idea what it is, maybe a water lizard or something similar. It was difficult to get a clearer shot of it and we will have to investigate. I saw it moving its head, but try as I might, I could not get a better shot of it.

Maybe someone here knows what it is?

And That's All Friends!

Note: All photos are my own and taken with a Canon Powershot SX60HS camera!

We hope that you have enjoyed the pictures and thank you for visiting a post by @papilloncharity

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48 comments
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Amazing occurence here now!

I opened the post to check for faults! I posted it at 6pm. It was 6 minutes old, had $6.66, today is the 6th and it's also our anniversary today on the 6th.
How rare is this?
Then if you divide our 18 years into 3 it is 666.

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I like the math.
Happy anniversary!
Such a nice post, those baby turtles are so cute. The picture of the landscape was breathtaking, really beautiful.
As far as that creature with the scaly head, looks a little scary to me.
I enjoyed your post, great photography.
Be well.

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Thank you kindly for the wishes.

Yes, we are blessed with nature over here and we have only seen about 10% of it thus far, as it is a huge area. There are stories about wonderful mountain valleys and waterfalls, hot water springs and small semi-desert towns higher up north in the area.

But time is on our side, as we are residing here now and of course we will explore and visit as many as we can.

I will get that scaly head critter sooner or later my friend and we will see what it is.

Glad that you enjoyed the post and hope that you guys will have a good week!

Blessings!

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Right back at ya, have a wonderful week, looking forward to you posting some more of that beautiful country.

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Thank you my friend and I have two loves in my life.
Nature and charity, or charity and nature 😄

But I post mostly about nature, so as not to be seen as begging for money hahaha.
My blog is filled with nature pictures and it will certainly continue!
Blessings!

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Snapping turtle baby is tiny, those lily leaves are not large, one photo you can see a fly on the lily pad to get an idea just how small this little one is.

Dragon flies most definitely grand in design, this is exceptionally beautiful reflecting amazing colours.

Not sure what the last is, hope no one is bringing unwanted pets to this pond or who knows what you will next find swimming the waters up there Stephen.

Wishing you a wonderful new week, congratulations on your anniversary and hitting all the 6's in the comments below 😃

!BEER

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Thank you Lady Joan and yes, that little guy was hardly bigger than a match box.

The Emperor falls under the Hawker family and all of the dragonflies in the family do not sit, but rather hangs due to their size. I have another one in the family, a beautiful gold and black one that I am still trying to identify.

Yes, I will get that strange one in the last photo sooner or later and we will see what it is.
I think that you are right about the dumping of pets in there.

Thank you for the kind wishes and may you guys also have a good new week.
Oh and thanks also for the token!

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Small little guy, just hope in time they do not become a menace to local inhabitants. Still remains exciting to see the life taking to being one with everything in the pond.

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Thankfully swimming is banned in most of the small dams here Lady Joan.
A few has remarked that they have fierce bites lol.
Nature certainly looks after it's own and the foreigners have settled in nicely in that dam.

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Haha what a natural wonderland!

All those different kinds of animals and babies are awesome to behold when they have gone away for the winter up here.

I remember swimming and being fearful of those snappers getting our toes. Great memories.

Cheers Pap!!

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What a great surprise to see you Zeke, how are you keeping?

Yeah, Spring season here always results in babies all over the place.

I am waiting for the call to go and see the Whale babies, as they come all the way down from the Antartic to have their babies here.

Snapper turtles are not resident in South Africa and someone must have dumped their imported pets into that dam.
I read that they have a bad bite, but was not lucky enough to get into contact with one yet.

Hope that you will have a good week my friend.

Blessings!

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Little turtles are so cute. Almost unbelievable that when they are grown up they can cut your finger with one bite.

I don't even ask how big this dragon fly might be. Probably like our crows or so 😉

No idea what the thing in the last photo could be.

These are cool numbers, what a coincidence - happy anniversary my friend 😊

Cheers and !BEER
!ENGAGE 30
!invest_vote

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Thank you for the kind anniversary wish Hannes,

I so wanted to hold that smallest one in my hand, but by the time I got into the water, he would have disappeared. He was about 5 centimeters in size.

Of course you know me by now and you also know that I will sooner or later get that animal in the last photo. Time will tell.

Cheers and thanks!

No, that dragonfly is not as big as a crow 🤣
He is about 80 or 90 centimeters long.
But they are beautiful indeed and I also have a photo of the female laying her eggs somewhere in my files.

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You're welcome Zac :)
Of course, I know you will keep on looking for this "thing" :)

80 or 90 centimeters? Honestly? That would be more than 30-35 inch - I think you meant millimeters ;)

Cheers and !BEER
!invest_vote

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Nope, I know the difference between millimeters and centimeters Hannes.
This is a big boy and he should have a tail. Could be anything in size, but he looks to me like some kind of leguan or a rock monitor!
I took the photo at a distance and if it is one he will leave the water at some time.
Easy to spot where he leaves the water, as their tails leave a clear drag mark in the mud.
If it is one, it will be my happiest day, as we also had them up north on the farm.

Cheers and thanks!

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I still can't believe it, although I know you know the difference, but 90 centimeters are almost 3 feet 🙄 If this guy flies towards me I run 🏃

Cheers and !BEER
!invest_vote

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Hahaha, I just had to answer this one today Hannes,

If you don't believe 90 centimeters, how does 2 meters sound?

"The leguaan is South Africa’s biggest lizard, and may grow to 2 metres in length. It loves the waterside and is a good swimmer and diver, using sideways movements of its flexible tail. Several live in the Cavern grounds and can be seen in the small dams".

Take note "can be seen in small dams"

Cheers and thanks!

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Haha, I have noticed too late that we have been talking about different things 😂 LOL
I have seen even bigger turtles as well as we have Laguans / iguanas in Zoos :)

Cheers and !BEER
!invest_vote

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Ah! So clarity has emerged 🤣

Yeah, I was talking about the leguan and you were talking about the turtle.
Soon I will be talking about a big carrot and you will think that it's impossible for the tomato in the same post to get that big 🤣🤣🤣

They say that age does that that to us my friend!

Cheers and thanks!

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Yes, it must be the age 😉 lol

Cheers and !BEER

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@johannpiber denkt du hast ein Vote durch @investinthefutur verdient!
@johannpiber thinks you have earned a vote of @investinthefutur !

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Dankeschön, und von mir kriegst du natürlich auch ein kleines !BEER :)

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... or have you been talking about the turtle? Yes, you meant the turtle and I thought of a 90 centimeter long dragonfly 🤣

Cheers and !BEER
!invest_vote

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Thank you for your engagement on this post, you have recieved ENGAGE tokens.

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Ah! That little turtle was so cute!
It blows me away the wonderful scenery around you with all the critters!
I appreciate you sharing it with us!
That last shot is a mystery to me too!

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Thank you my dear friend.
All that it takes is to spend a silent hour or two at one of these little dams, then the magic starts to happen.
My pleasure to share and glad that you liked the post.
Hope that you guys will have a good week!

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That is so cool what a coincidence Happy anniversary 👍

I love turtles and they are some cute shots you got there the dragonfly just beautiful haven't seen one in those colors before and i love blue and the landscapes look so refreshing.

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Thank you and it was indeed a weird coincidence.
Glad that you liked the post and this is indeed a lovely area with some interesting insects and landscapes!

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