Painted turtles bask in Boundary County sun

On a trip around the Kootenai National Wildlife Refuge this past week-end I noticed a number of turtles basking in the sun on a log in a pond of water beside a gravel road. On a closer look I noticed the turtles were painted turtles. The Painted Turtle is the only species of turtle that occurs naturally in Idaho so identifying them is simple. Although, due to escaped pets and introduced species, one must become familiar with the general characteristics of Painted Turtles to avoid confusing them with such turtles a Box Turtles, and Red-eared Sliders (both common pet species).