Käyttäjän standingquarter päiväkirja

In attempting to visit all of Staten Island's parks this summer, Reed's Basket Willow Swamp Park was next on my list. I was not sure what to expect, having spent most of my time in only one or two other parks. I felt that in Allison Pond park specifically the animal life has a very different relationship with people. The turtles and ducks I've interacted with and watched there almost always approach me in hopes for food. Due to this, I do not feel that I can properly assess their behaviors or understand how or why they interact with each other and their environment. Reed's Basket Willow Swamp Park being a much larger and seemingly much less visited park gave me high hopes for recording animals in a far more natural manner.
Upon arriving at the park, I found myself a comfortable place to sit near the largest pond. I found a radiator that could have been anywhere from 5 to 50 years old, perfectly jutting out of the water, giving me the perfect platform to sit on. Then, like clockwork, I saw a large family of Mallards approaching me. I was immediately disappointed as they seemed prepared for me to have some kind of bread or food with me. However, by the time they got close to me, they began to slow down; showing some apprehension due to my presence. This is what I was hoping for. I believe I just got there right on time to see them. They found a shady corner that was just far enough from me that they felt comfortable. The ducks didn't do much of anything for a bit besides swim around, never straying too far away from each other. Not even five minutes after this, I looked up to see a small family of Canada Geese approaching me. They appeared to be much less fearful of me on their whole journey across the pond. Once they were within five feet or so of me, they spent some time checking me out, watching for any sudden movements which I was sure not to make. The young geese acted much more independent than the young ducks. They would stray as far as they felt and even turn their backs on their parents at times. The adult geese then began to approach the mallards with their necks held forward. They'd rush the ducks, swim back, and repeat. Seemingly trying to corral to ducks away. After this they returned to their young goslings and began to bite at the thick layer of some algae and thrash it around. Without any hesitation, the young geese began to do the same thing. They immediately began doing it independent of their parents soon after as well. They'd swim away but still looking for the pond scum. The young geese would even charge the ducks if they got close enough.
This was extremely exciting to watch and document. Perhaps this is typical of Geese and their young simply wait for the adults to eat before they do but this seemed to be a genuine behavior that I was watching. The ducks didn't appear to show any similar behaviors. When they did begin to eat they seemed to do it all together. This acted as a great piece of evidence for my belief that the best thing that we as naturalists or simply as lovers of nature can do for wildlife is leave them alone. For example, if I in any way tried to interact with or feed those birds (or if people had done it before me) I would have missed out on watching them in the most natural setting I could. Of course ideally I would have been completely hidden but it's a valuable lesson I am learning along the way. Please do not feed, handle, or in any way interact with your local wildlife. It will only prove to harm them and the potential experiences you and others can have with them.

I've known for a long time that Allison Pond has at least one snapping turtle in its population. Located in the "True Pond" in the back of the park, nearing the Goodhue Park border. When I was a kid I remember seeing an old, algae covered, grizzled snapping turtle that would approach any disturbance made on the water's surface. Bringing my camera with me, I was hoping to document whatever I could find, but the snapping turtles were especially on my mind.

Upon arriving at the "True Pond", I sat on rotting wooden steps that dipped into the pond's fairly clear water. I looked out to see Pond Sliders sunbathing on floating logs and a lone Mallard resting in the shade of a tree's canopy. I set myself and my camera up and prepared to wait for the perfect shot to show itself. Without much time at all going by, I noticed three or four Pond Sliders eagerly swimming toward me, stopping every once in a while to catch their breath or check me out (I wasn't sure.) Once they made it within a few feet of the stairs I was sitting on, they would swim back to maintain a healthy distance. I can only assume that these turtles are very used to being fed by families, hikers, and any other passers by who have a morsel to spare. This thought was only supported when I heard the splashing of a much larger animal. I looked to my right to see a large Common Snapping Turtle crawling off of a muddy bank and descending into the water*. I suspected the turtle was alerted to the chance of free food by the commotion made by the Pond Sliders on the calm and stagnant pond.

The snapping turtle approached just as quickly as the other sliders did. However this snapping turtle showed no signs of turning back when reaching the stairs I was sitting on. Again, I can only imagine these animals feel so comfortable approaching me due to some form of conditioning with food. The Pond Sliders showed little fear around the much larger Common Snapping Turtle. They swam around the snapping turtle almost as if they were tempted to climb onto its back. The snapping turtle didn't mind them much at all however. It was only once I noticed 2 to 3 other snapping turtles swimming toward me when the original turtle became agitated. A Common Snapping Turtle of a very similar size approached and the turtles bit at each other. This created a loud crash of water, sending Pond Sliders and birds alike to get as far away as possible from this commotion. This continued for the next 10 minutes as I sat. A snapping turtle would approach the one closest to me, they would fight in the water, and the weaker of the two would swim away. Until finally, a slow and old looking Common Snapping Turtle swam up to the stairs**. The turtle there simply left them alone and later left. This clearly older turtle hung out by the stairs with me until I packed my camera and left.

I left thinking of how that last snapping turtle reminded me of the one I saw as a kid. Not knowing much on how to accurately guess the age of turtles, I could only imagine how old any of the turtles I had seen are. Regardless, I was very happy that they stopped by the stairs. I felt bad that they were probably a bit disappointed by the fact that I didn't give them any free food but I hoped that maybe they enjoyed hanging out with me too. At least a little bit. Don't feed your local wildlife folks; we don't need the snapping turtles beefing by the stairs.

*First picture of Common Snapping Turtle from my observation.
**Second picture of Common Snapping Turtle from my observation.