The sun is finally out! The painted turtles at Nature Boardwalk at Lincoln Park Zoo have certainly noticed; many turtles have been basking around the island on rocks or logs this week.

Some of the pond’s turtles are equipped with radio transmitters that allow biologists at the zoo to track their movement throughout the pond. This lets us better understand how the turtles use the site. From this we’ve learned that the turtles’ favorite spot to hang out is, by far, the island.

All winter the turtles stuck close to the edges of the island, waiting out the cold under the ice. Now that the water has heated up a bit, they’re moving around more and occasionally venturing into open waters, sometimes even going to the Café Brauer side of the pond. However, in general they’re still staying in close proximity to the island.

All around the periphery of the island are tree branches, logs and rocks for the turtles to bask on; the pond landscaping was designed with the needs of turtles in mind. For painted turtles, that island is the place to be!

Vicky Hunt