OK...so I'm biased by the subject matter, but that is a truly lovely photograph, Barry! I love it.
Unfortunately, the species pictured is a red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans), which is native to the southeastern United States. It became so popular in the pet trade, however, it can now be found over most of the globe, and is displacing less dominant species in many ecosystems. On one hand, I cheer on their evolutionary success (a lot like our own); on the other, I bemoan the loss of biodiversity. If only it were more black-and-white. ;)
Hi, Christopher. They're not exactly in a "natural" environment to begin with, and I doubt they could leave the station to mess up other things. See the photo on Wikipedia:
Hungry Hyaena
OK...so I'm biased by the subject matter, but that is a truly lovely photograph, Barry! I love it.
Unfortunately, the species pictured is a red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans), which is native to the southeastern United States. It became so popular in the pet trade, however, it can now be found over most of the globe, and is displacing less dominant species in many ecosystems. On one hand, I cheer on their evolutionary success (a lot like our own); on the other, I bemoan the loss of biodiversity. If only it were more black-and-white. ;)
Barry
Hi, Christopher. They're not exactly in a "natural" environment to begin with, and I doubt they could leave the station to mess up other things. See the photo on Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atocha