“If you help a female across the road, you must handle her with great gentleness. A turtle who feels threatened will often release urine to startle or deter predators, but a nesting mother who has to do this on the way to the nest has to detour for another drink of water.”
I don‘t remember what this had to do with Jesus or the Bible, but when I was a kid my dad, who is a minister, taught kids how to help a turtle cross without getting peed on.
I always have a deep, deep feeling for the turtles. If I could take their pain for them I would. Caring deeply comes at a cost. The word “compassion,” contains within itself its emotion price. The prefix “com” means “with.” The Latin root “pate” means “suffering.” To feel compassion, therefore, is to enter into another‘s suffering. It is the knowledge that there can never be any peace and joy for me, unless there is peace and joy for you.
Turtles are a red-hot commodity in the worthless world of the illegal wildlife trade. Turtle trafficking is networked, clandestine, and lucrative. A single three-striped Chinese box turtle, whose powdered plastron is rumoured incorrectly to cure cancer can fetch $25,000…Sea turtles, box turtles, spotted turtles, snapping turtles—no turtle is safe. Poachers mine scientific data and scour books and newspapers for clues on where to find them.
Most of us think of turtles as being silent but no, some of them are quite talkative. Various species croak, squeak, belt, whine, and whistle. For the velociraptors park in “Jurassic Park,” filmmakers used the sound of turtles having sex. Some species of Australian river turtle nestlings communicate vocally with each other and with their mothers while still inside the egg.
#FirstLineFridays #FLF @ShyBookOwl
Amid all the other homes on the suburban street—white, grey, beige, pale blue, light yellow—this two-story saltbox stands out.
(My first #AuldLangSpine read from @Chelsea.Poole !)
“Wow! It really is long! The Chameleon's tongue can be almost twice as long as its body”.
Dive into the slimy and scaly world of reptiles with The Yucky Reptile Alphabet Book by Jerry Pallotta! Each letter features a unique reptile, paired with fun facts and vibrant illustrations that entertain and educate. Perfect for curious young readers, this book blends humor with learning, inspiring a love for wildlife and showcasing the incredible diversity of reptiles.
pickThe Yucky Reptile Alphabet Book by Jerry Pallotta uses vibrant illustrations and fun facts to make learning about reptiles exciting. Each letter introduces a unique reptile, combining humor and education to engage young readers. The book fosters curiosity and respect for wildlife, celebrating the diversity of reptiles while teaching key facts in an accessible and entertaining way.
“But if people are bitten, snakes can help! Medicine is made from their poison to treat snake bites.“
I see this book used in my classroom as a read aloud story to talk about and discuss snakes. I think this book could also fit into social emotional topics because most people feel very strongly about snakes, but they actually do a lot for our environment. This could help students to see that even if there is something they dislike, it could still be beneficial to them.
