Mystery of the Softshell Turtles

[hewhoisatpeace]

My daughter caught two baby softshell turtles at a local lake. After quarantining them for 3 days, we released them in the pond. They were fun to find and watch for about two weeks, maybe three, then vanished without a trace. The nearest water is a very small stream downhill several hundred meters through the woods. It has been months now since I have seen them, and of course they are not in the skimmer, or the prefilter basket. Any ideas?

 

[joshk87]

Possibly a racoon or some other predator.

 

[hewhoisatpeace]

Maybe so...

 

[DrCase]

I put one in my pond a few years ago
I never saw it again
It was 6" around it must have moved on :bowdown:

 

[hewhoisatpeace]

Too far to the nearest water, I'd think. Maybe my cat caught it, although it didn't stay on the surface much.