From Under Armor

leathery dots of color            
                     .          e  from muddy water 
                     .         g
                     .        r
                     .       e
                     .     m
                     .  e


s t r e t c h i n g   h e a d   and   l i m b
                                         out from under armor, 

                                                              
                 exposed 

                    .
                    .
                    .             g  for the sun
                    .            n
                    .           i
                    .          h     
                    .        c     
                    .      a 
                    .    e
                    .  r 



copyright ©2015 Terry Boswell

This is my response to Jennifer Nichole Wells’s One Word Photo Challenge: Armadillo. I have no photos of armadillos so I’m featuring another armored creature native to my part of the world. The Wallkill River is frequently dotted with these colorful painted turtles stretching their heads and limbs out of their shells to sun themselves.

I took these photographs earlier this year on a day when the river was reflecting the surrounding landscape beautifully. To see more photos from that afternoon, click here.

To see another turtle shot, click here. And to see another photo from another day on the Wallkill River, click here.