Florida Gopher Tortoise Digging His Den Metal Print

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According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, "The gopher tortoise is one of five North American tortoise species and is the only tortoise naturally found east of the Mississippi River. Its range includes the southeastern Coastal Plain from southeastern Louisiana east to southern South Carolina, and south to Florida. Gopher tortoises occur in parts of all 67 Florida counties." Gopher tortoises dig their dens in open area, so we see them a lot along our paved trails. This one appeared to be digging as he was covered in dirt. But in retrospect I wonder if he was a she laying eggs. I was just looking at the dirt on its shell. They don't lay their eggs in their dens, though that seems like it would make sense. Instead they lay them outside the entrance.

I love to tell stories. About twenty years ago I had my first freelance travel article accepted by a magazine. Much to my surprise, the magazine expected photos along with words. I had not taken any during the preliminary work for my article. I drove back to the site and took the photos for the article with my little Olympus digital camera. The article was published with those very amateur photos. In time, I bought an Olympus OMD-EM5, a great camera for nature and travel photographers and discovered that I enjoyed telling stories with pictures more than I did with words. The last twenty year have been an incredibly exciting time as resources for photographers have exploded. I have been lucky enough to have some great teachers along the way...