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Southern Soft-shelled Turtle — Part 2
As captives, the writer has had admirable opportunities of studying the species. Some large specimens--about fifteen inches in length of shell, were placed in a tank twenty feet long and eight feet wide. On one side of this capacious basin was a slanting runway, but during the several months that the turtles were kept here, they spent their entire time in the water, which was about five feet deep. When undisturbed their swimming movements were very deliberate and graceful, recalling the actions of the marine turtles. After crawling about the bottom of the tank for a time, a specimen would slowly rear itself upon the hind feet, and then, with a single sweep of the front limbs, rise to the surface, where it floated about with the slender tip of the snout protruding from the water. If alarmed, while in this position, all signs of grace disappear. Working the broad, paddle-like feet in alternation, he would dart through the water in lively fashion to seek a dark corner and there to hide. Every three days, each of these turtles was given a fair-sized shad. It was devoured by a series of clean-cut bites, the sharp jaws cutting the fish as readily as a cleaver.