Baby Snappers 
Egg Layer on Lawn 
Painted Turtle 
R-43-105 
Snapper Egg-Layer 
Turtle Painted Sky
Timeless Turtle Series: Charles River
Artist Statement
“The first year we moved into our property in the woods on the Charles River, I was startled to find, in June, a host of snapping turtles sitting in stillness on my lawn, in our meadow, and even in the gravel up against the house. With a little bit of exploration, I quickly discovered these turtles were egg layers, digging ferociously with their hind feet the huge holes where they would bury their ping pong sized white eggs. Then, they would cover the nest, and even drag tiny sticks and bits of dried grass to cover all visual signs that might attract a fox or skunk or other predator. Another surprise came a few months later, in September, when we suddenly saw dozens of tiny turtles in the lawn and on the driveway creeping, instinctively, toward the river that would become their lifelong home. The turtle egg laying and hatching rituals continue to signal the start of our summer and the end of our summer on the Charles.
I always stop to greet the turtles that share this land on the Charles and surrounding wetlands where I walk daily. They are one of the few creatures that live in the river that spend time on land––that are visible in the daytime. Most of the other river dwellers have the capacity to hide from human activity––being either nocturnal or swift. But the pace and gorgeous shells of turtles make them easy to spot and spend time with and appreciate.
Turtles are a wonderful reminder about the value of a slow and steady pace.”
Kelly DuMar is a poet, playwright and workshop facilitator from Boston. She’s author of three poetry chapbooks, ‘girl in tree bark’ (Nixes Mate, 2019), ‘Tree of the Apple,’ (Two of Cups Press), and ‘All These Cures,’ (Lit House Press). Her poems, prose and photos are published in many literary journals including Bellevue Literary Review, Tupelo Quarterly, Crab Fat, Storm Cellar, Corium & Tiferet. Kelly serves on the Board of the International Women’s Writing Guild (IWWG). She blogs her daily nature photos & creative writing at kellydumar.com/blog