Leaf lands on a turtle's back

By Aaron Horrell

Sometimes the simplest things in nature combine to make interesting and wonderful surprises.

There is nothing odd about a water turtle climbing onto a log, stretching out in the sun and drying off.

But it is unusual for an autumn leaf to fall from a tree, land on that same turtle's back and not slide off or be blown off by a gentle wind.

Maybe the most unusual thing about this photo is that I got the photo without scaring the turtle back into the water.

I was lucky the wind was not blowing.

The turtle is a male common red-eared slider. He is identified as a male by his long toenails.

The leaf is from a sweet gum tree. Often leaves at or near the top of a sweet gum tree will turn purple in autumn.

The object floating in the algae-covered water behind the turtle is an acorn that has fallen from a tree called an overcup oak.