Friends?

I was surprised to find this Serrated Hinged Terrapin and Nile Crocodile basking together on the Shire River in Malawi, especially as it appears that the terrapin had a run-in with a Crocodile before. On the other hand, it could be that it relies on its “Skunk” defense…

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Leica M240, Vario-Elmar-R 105-280

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Wow, those teeth are nasty looking. Great environmental image. Nice.

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An uneasy truce for sure. Amazing what turtles can withstand. I’ve seen many injuries, too, but alas not from predators, but from us - cars and boats. When you say skunk defense, I take it that means the turtle will spray some kind of musk or something to try to get the croc to let go?

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Definitely a monochrome photo. They are certainly well camouflaged. I guess the turtle feels safe around the croc. Kind of makes me think of the tortoise and the hare fable.

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When it is threatened it will produce an incredibly noxious stink.

A wonderful photo. Thanks for the education about Serrated Hinged Terrapins (I have never heard of them) and their relationships with crocodiles.

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Definitely a good monochrome too :smiley:

Wow! That’s an amazing sighting you got to witness. There are a lot of stories of unusual friendships being formed in the animal world. Thanks for sharing!

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Great combo to see out in nature and surprising. I much prefer the color version, as the croc teeth look much more foreboding to me with the color stains. Good one.

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