Dora’s tale starts with her arrival. An arrival so unexplained -- so miraculous -- it could only have begun in Mexico.
Dora is a turtle. A Mexican mud turtle. A title so bland it could be borne solely by the most dignified of animals.
My friend Anne discovered Dora in a fountain at her house. That does not sound very miraculous. After all, where else would you find an amphibian other than in a water place?
The miraculous part is Dora is no more than two inches long. And the fountain walls are about two feet high. Lined with tile. Escaping Alcatraz would be a piece of cake compared to Dora’s appearance in the fountain.
Of course, there were all of the usual theories of human and avian agency. But we will stick with the magical appearance theory. After all, it is Mexico.
Anne rescued Dora -- named, I suspect, for explorer fame -- and kept her in a special tub outfitted with a brick, lettuce, and fancy imported turtle food.
But, all good things must end. Anne flew north this afternoon and dropped off Dora at my place – tub and all – with instructions to do as I saw fit.
Now and then, I am lucky to face issues we have already worked through in my mind. When Gary of the mexile left Mexico to return to England, he was faced with the problem of finding homes for his turtles. At the time, I suggested my laguna would be a good home. After all, quite a few turtles live in and around it.
I let Dora wait in the garden for a few hours while I completed some other tasks. We then walked shell and hand to the edge of the laguna where I placed her on a rock. She poked her head out once or twice. Probably trying to get a sense of the huge world that stretched to her horizon.
And then with one push, she was off into the water. Putting her natural Dora exploring skills to good use.
I suspect her life outlook is the same as most animals. Woody Allen said it best: “To me nature is … big fish eating little fish, and plants eating plans, and animals eating … It's like an enormous restaurant, that's the way I see it.”
Well, I hope Dora can enjoying more years of eating than being eaten.
Dora is darling. I hope she is able to enjoy life for a good long time.
ReplyDeleteShe reminded me of the little pond turtles we had as pets. I thought about keeping her in the tub. But she deserved to be set free.
ReplyDeleteGood call....
ReplyDeleteAnd she was not quite a dog.
ReplyDeletehoepfully her release wll not lead to an early demise. the first thing i thought was, oh, oh, a crocodile snack,yet would a croc eat a turtle? hopefully dora won't find out the hard way.
ReplyDeletesteve, do you know what is going on with mexiwoods blog. i was happy to see him posting again only to realize that it was a post from last year, yet the blogroll says 8 hours ago-strange!
have a great week!
teresa en nagoya
Woody Allen said it best: “To me nature is … big fish eating little fish, and plants eating plants, and animals eating … It's like an enormous restaurant, that's the way I see it.”
ReplyDeleteWoody was right, once again!
Saludos,Don Cuevas
Or, as my Aunt Bessie used to say (having stolen it from another famous aunt): "Life's a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving to death."
ReplyDeleteCrocodiles love turtles -- as snacks. But she would not even have been the equivalent of a piece of popcorn.
ReplyDeleteI noticed John's post popped to the top of my list. But I discovered the same thing when I opened it. When I last talked with him, he said it was difficult to write because of this loss of short-term memory.
Turtles are reptiles, not amphibians.
ReplyDeleteSincerely,
The Biology Police
They are, indeed. And you get the prize.
ReplyDeleteI wish Dora the best of luck in her new life! I didn't, as you know, pick the laguna as a new home for my turts. I still get updates on them from time to time. The most recent bit of news was that Bob caught, killed and partially ate a bird that landed to have a drink of water...
ReplyDeleteGood for Bob. After all turtles and crocodiles are related.
ReplyDelete