Turtle encounter, almost

The nearer you come the further I go, and this was precisely what this red-eared slider did to me when I approached.  Spying it from across the pond its symmetrical image in the pond water had me hurrying along to get a closer shot but unfortunately sensing me from afar, it disappeared instantly into the pond.
What's interesting about this one is its age going by its faded shell, suggesting that it's a long time resident here.

I had much earlier came across another one, a box turtle, but this one looked totally out of place here, and it also promptly disappeared into the undergrowth probably because I was between it and the pond.

Sadly sighting turtles in the taman is so rare now.  I remember when it was quite easy to come across colonies of turtles, my biggest count being eight of big and small ones.