Is That a Turtle in My Pool?

The other day as a friend and I exercised by her pool – at an acceptable distance from one another, of course – she uttered a question that I’ve never heard anyone ask. She glanced over at the sparkling water and wondered aloud, “is that a turtle in my pool?” As she gestured toward a little Post-It Note-sized green thing floating on the surface, I laughed and said “no way, that’s just a leaf,” but then that leaf started swimming! It was, in fact, a turtle!

As a native Miamian I have seen a lot of critters in pools. There are the ubiquitous frogs, occasional snakes and lizards, raccoons might splash around the steps, and neighborhood cats certainly stop for a sip of water from time to time. However, I have never seen a turtle living it up in a swimming pool like this little fellow was doing! At first he paddled at the top, then when my friend grabbed a pool net to fish him out, he quickly dove to the bottom and hung out there until it was time for me to leave! I texted her later to see what had happened to her new pet, and her pool man was actually able to get him out of the water, but feisty little turtle that he was, he wandered off before they could release him into a canal or lake. I wonder if he will be back for a dip in her pool any time soon?