h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Do you get turtles where you live, Dmitri? On the River Allegheny along with the geese? I always thought turtles needed a warmer winter.

Though there was a Mutant Ninja Turtle craze in the UK when people went out and bought turtles, got bored with them and dumped them in ponds, where they survived.

Thanks for asking, MVP! There are no end of turtles and terrapins in Pennsylvania!

Box turtles, mud turtles, painted turtles, redbelly turtles, snapping turtles (which are Bad News, hence the name), etc, etc.

Here are some:

http://www.fishandboat.com/Resource/AmphibiansandReptiles/Pages/TurtlePhotos.aspx

I don't know if that turtle was native. I suspect so, but it lives at the zoo. Farmer Hoggett is a big turtle expert. All I can say is, 'Yes, this is a turtle.'

northcountrypublicradio says, 'Unlike frogs, turtles don't hibernate through the winter. In fact, sometimes you can see snappers and other species moving around under the ice. While their metabolism runs at very low ebb in the cold, they remain alert to changes in light and temperature that signal the coming spring.'

Even alligators have been known to survive cold weather - when the water gets cold, they stick their snouts above the water line before it freezes, so they'll be able to breathe. Then, being amphibians, they slow down their metabolism.

I didn't know turtles were scarce in the UK! Now I've learned something.

There are no native turtles or tortoises in the UK, not even many native snakes or lizards either. I'm not sure why.

Wow! I never knew that.

We get some beautiful turtles in our trailer park, too.

Alas, when they lay their eggs, the newly-hatched young don't head for the water, but crawl across the road and often get squashed by cars. (

That's a shame, Paul - I wonder if you called the agricultural extension office or animal control, if they'd have any suggestions.

I can just imagine their suggestions.

This is Boston, not a wellspring of sympathy for much of anything. Overworked, underpaid workers who fervently wish for the hard questions to be answered by the guy on the next shift.

If they can muster any enthusiasm, it's for any problem that can solve itself.

That's a shame. Here's some info from a friendlier state, then.

http://www.farmanddairy.com/top-stories/how-to-help-turtles-cross-the-road-without-doing-harm/558329.html

Also the Fish and Wildlife Service:

http://medium.com/usfws/turtles-are-crossing-the-road-96dafc2b3515