Vanessa Saunders, a Namibian student in Beijing, China, writes:
“I have a semi-aquatic terrapin turtle as a pet and his name is Mervin the Magnificent.
“He has an amazing personality and not a day goes by that he does not entertain me.
“Soon after adopting Mervin I realised he is a very special turtle – an escape artist that
would give Houdini a run for his money. Since day one Mervin has been escaping from his bowl, from the bathroom, any place he would find himself in. He quickly earned the nickname ‘Bakondja’.
“Recently when cleaning my apartment, I placed him in the paper basket to get him out of the way for a few minutes. Mervin did not find this amusing and when I looked back he was busy escaping from his enclosure.”
