Beneath the ice, beneath the mud at the bottom of a chilled winter pond, a heart beats one time.
Snow drifts across ice to cover frozen soil at pond's edge.
Wind whistles through bare branches of dormant hardwood trees. Eleven minutes later the heart beats again. The heart of a hibernating Painted Turtle may beat as slowly as once every ten to eleven minutes. However, this is a flurry of activity compared to its respiratory rate, which is zero. Painted Turtles can hold their breath for up to five months during winter.