Exploring The Different Types of Turtles in Oklahoma
Oklahoma – where the winds come sweeping down the plain. The image of Oklahoma is of those fields of waving wheat (that sure smell sweet!), but perhaps surprisingly, the state is home to nineteen species and subspecies of turtle.
The reason for this is probably due to its diverse geography. As well as those farmlands, it has ten distinct geographical regions, ranging from mountains to tropical forests. Sitting as it does between the forested lands of the east and the deserts of the west, over time many turtle species have found the exact environment that suits them in Oklahoma.
What Are The Laws Relating To Turtles in Oklahoma?
Turtle laws are designed to protect endangered or threatened species, to ensure animal welfare, and to protect public health. Federal law protects all sea turtles, and it also prohibits the ownership of turtles that are less than four inches long. Oklahoma is of course covered by these laws, as well as having its own regulations. Here is the reference to the Four Inch Rule:
Code of federal regulations, title 21, volume 8, part 1240 ‘Control of communicable diseases’, subpart D ‘Specific Administrative Decisions Regarding Interstate Shipments’, section 1240.62 ‘Turtles intrastate and interstate requirements.’
In Oklahoma, you are allowed to keep turtles as pets with some exceptions. These are western chicken turtles, alligator snapping turtles, common map turtles, and any endangered species without a state permit. You may keep a maximum of only six turtle species at a time.
Can I Buy And Sell Turtles In Oklahoma?
Yes, you can, but you must have a license to do so. You are not allowed to sell turtles caught in the wild. You can’t buy and sell box turtles, although you are allowed to own them.
How About Catching Wild Turtles?
You are allowed to catch up to six turtles a day from the wild if you have a fishing license. To catch box turtles, you need a hunting license. You may not take any of the endangered turtles listed above, or turtles from the Wichita Mountain area. It must not use weapons to capture turtles. You are not allowed to take a turtle with a carapace length of more than sixteen inches.
The Alligator Snapping Turtle Macroclemys temminckii
One of the world’s largest turtles, its scaly prehistoric looks and ferocious bite make it seem like a creature from an earlier time. Growing to as much as 40″ long, and weighing in at up to 180 lb or even more, the alligator snapping turtle is a formidable creature and one that should be treated with extreme caution.
Its jaw is very strong, and it’s perfectly capable of breaking one of your bones. The head is massive, and it has spikes on its chin and cheeks, as well as that hooked beak-like mouth. The carapace, or upper shell, can be gray, green, brown, or black, and has three prominent ridges which are spiked, almost like medieval armor.
One interesting feature of this turtle is that it has a tongue that it uses as a lure. At the end of its tongue, it has a worm-like appendage. It opens its mouth and lets the “worm” wriggle in the water, attracting unsuspecting fish to investigate. Then a snap of its jaws and dinner is served.
When it comes to diet, alligator snapping turtles are opportunistic omnivores. They eat other turtles, water birds, fish, snakes, dead things, mollusks, and small mammals that they may find swimming in the water. They are generally found in rivers flowing into the Gulf of Mexico.
Living to be as much as 120 years old, alligator snapping turtles have a long reproductive life, starting breeding when they are about eighteen to twenty pounds in weight and around 13″ long. Despite this, due to loss of habitat and human predation, the alligator snapping turtle is designated by the IUCN as “threatened”. You are not allowed to keep alligator snapping turtles as a pet in Oklahoma. Their conservation status is “vulnerable”.
The Common Map Turtle Graptemys geographica
The common map turtle is a very attractive creature and is also known as the Northern map turtle. When young, this turtle has a dark brown carapace, or upper shell, with orange, yellow, and tan patterning with dark outlines, giving the appearance of a map. These pretty marking fade with age. The skin is dark green with yellow markings, with a yellow splash behind the eye.
The males and females vary greatly in size, with the males growing only to 6″ long and ¾ lb in weight. Females, on the other hand, grow to 10″ long and can weigh as much as five and a half pounds. They enjoy living in open water with fallen branches that they use for sunbathing. These spend November to April under water, absorbing oxygen directly from the water, which must be well-oxygenated.
They are basically carnivores, and the females, who have large heads and jaws, live principally on a diet of mollusks, although they enjoy the odd crayfish or insect. Males have a similar diet, but they eat smaller mollusks. Habitat loss is the most significant challenge that these turtles face. They are very shy and don’t appreciate the nearby presence of humans. You are not allowed to keep map turtles as pets in Oklahoma.
The Common Musk Turtle (Stinkpot) Sternotherus odoratus
The common musk turtle defends itself by emitting a skink-like, musky smell designed to make predators shrink back in horror! In appearance, it has a fairly plain dark brown, black, or dark gray carapace, or upper shell, with a small, lighter-colored plastron.
A small turtle growing to just 5″, has a pointy head with barbels, and the skin color is dark with greenish or lemon stripes. Although it’s not the best of swimmers it likes to spend most of its time in the water, which it prefers to come with a muddy bottom. Look for this turtle in backwaters, ditches, ponds, and slow-moving streams. This turtle is not under threat at present.
The Common Snapping Turtle Chelydra serpentina serpentine
One of the biggest freshwater turtles, it gets its Latin name from its very long, mobile, snake-like neck. It has a big head and sometimes sports barbels. Growing to 14″ long, and anything up to seventy pounds in weight, the snapping turtle is not aggressive. He can, however, give you a serious bite if he is trying to defend himself, so take care if you are handling one of these creatures.
They like to live in large bodies of water that have a good supply of food. They are omnivorous eaters, with a preference for more protein when they are younger. The common snapping turtle can tolerate a wide diversity of weather and seems quite adaptable. Their conservation status is of the least concern.
The Midland Smooth Softshell Apalone mutica mutica
This is one of the softshell family of turtles and is a rather dull-looking creature. It grows to around 13″, and has the usual rubbery soft shell of its family. They can be found distributed widely around the state of Oklahoma, particularly in water with muddy or sandy bottoms. They are omnivorous, enjoy a mixed diet, and are not considered to be under threat.
The Mississippi Map Turtle Graptemys pseudogeographica kohnii
The Mississippi mud turtle has a dark brown carapace with a yellow lower edge. This chunky turtle grows to between 5″ and 7″ long, and lives for around thirty years. They are very popular as pets. These enjoy living in water with a muddy bottom, and they are omnivorous. They are plentiful in Oklahoma and are considered to be of the least concern.
The Mississippi Mud Turtle Kinosternon subrubrum hippocrepis
The Mississippi mud turtle has a dark brown carapace with a yellow lower edge. This chunky turtle grows to between 5″ and 7″ long, and lives for around thirty years. These enjoy living in water with a muddy bottom, and they are omnivorous. These are plentiful in Oklahoma and are considered to be of the least concern from a conservation viewpoint.
The Missouri River Cooter Pseudemys concinna metteri
The Missouri River cooter has a very dark brown or olive green carapace with yellow lines. It is often hard to see the lines as the shell may be covered with algae. The plastron is creamy-yellow in color, and the dark skin is very vividly patterned with yellow lines and swirls. This turtle grows to as much as 15″. They prefer streams that have a good flow, although they can be found living in lakes. It prefers a mainly vegetarian diet, with the occasional bug just for fun. It is not considered to be under threat in the state of Oklahoma.
The Ornate Box Turtle Terrapene ornata ornate
The ornate box turtle is a member of the box turtle family. Box turtles all have the same attribute – their plastron, or lower shell, is hinged, and it can snap its shell tightly close when threatened. This turtle is prettily patterned, as the name suggests, with a dark carapace ornamented with delicate yellow and orange lines and spots. The plastron is lemon-colored, and their dark skin is also lightly spotted.
Growing to 7′ long, they can live up to a hundred years of age. They prefer to live on the land, although they need to be near water. They are omnivores, and their conservation status is “Vulnerable”.
The Ouachita Map Turtle Graptemys ouachitensis ouachitensis
This turtle has a dark carapace with lines that look a little like a relief map. The plastron is yellow, and the skin has thin pale yellow colored lines. Males grow to between 3″ to 5″, females from 8″ to 10″. They can be found in slow-moving water – lakes, ponds, and streams. They have an omnivorous diet. Their conservation status is “Least Concern”.
The Pallid Spiny Softshell Turtle Apalone spinifera pallida
This is a sub-species of the spiny softshell turtle. With its leathery shell and characteristic long neck, this large turtle enjoys perching just underneath the water and using its sharp nose like a snorkel. The white spots on its shell that can be seen on juveniles are ringed with black. A medium to large-sized turtle, females can grow to be 20″ long. It enjoys slow-moving waters, lakes, ponds, rivers, and marshy areas. They are carnivores, and not considered to be under threat.
The Razorback Musk Turtle Sternotherus carinatus
This is a very distinctive turtle with sharply-edged scutes. They are colored from pale gray to dark brown and grow to be five inches long. These are carnivorous and enjoy eating mollusks and crustaceans. They are happy in most kinds of fresh water and are not considered to be under threat.
The Red-eared Slider Trachemys scripta elegans
The red-eared slider is identified by the red patches on the side of its face. It is the number one most popular turtle to keep as a pet in the United States. They generally grow to about 8″ long, but the occasional individual can grow to be quite a bit larger. These have a slim profile shell that makes them very efficient swimmers.
They enjoy living in quiet waters and are readily adaptable to a variety of kinds of environments – ponds, marshes, streams, marshes, and swamps. These love to bask in the sun and can be easily seen indulging themselves in this activity beside Oklahoma’s waterways.
If you decide to keep one of these turtles as a pet, you should be aware that they can live up to twenty years or more. A problem with these popular pets is that people get tired of them and release them into the wild. They may not do well in the wild, having lived a sheltered aquarium life. Make sure that you are committed to giving your pet a long and good life.
The Southern Painted Turtle Chrysemys picta dorsalis
The Southern painted turtle is one of the beautiful painted turtle family. The dark shell has a bold line from front to back, usually vermillion red, although it can be flame orange or even yellow. The plastron is plain and pale cream. It grows to between 5′ and 7′, and can live for up to thirty years. It is omnivorous and can be found in slow-moving water, ponds, and even ditches. Its conservation status is of the least concern.
The Three-Toed Box Turtle Terrapene carolina triunguis
This State Reptile of Missouri is not a dazzling chap, but it is very rare, and so in conservation terms, it is considered vulnerable. It has a high domed carapace in shades of gray and brown, and olive-green or gray skin. These can close its shell up tight, as can all box turtles. It has three toes on its feet, which is its claim to fame. They grow to a maximum of 7″ long and can live to be a hundred years of age. It is omnivorous, eating whatever comes along, and it loves on land, in grassland, or meadows.
The Western Chicken Turtle Deirochelys reticularia miaria
The Western chicken turtle has a long neck, that some people think looks a bit like a chicken’s neck. They have a dark brown oval-shaped shell with a very light patterning. The plastron is pale in color. The skin is dark and striped in green and yellow. They grow to 10″ long, with females being slightly larger than males. They prefer still waters and are omnivores. Their conservation status is of the least concern.
The Western Painted Turtle Chrysemys picta bellii
This turtle is one of the pretty painted turtle family. It has a dark shell with an orange-edged carapace. The skin is notable brightly lined with yellow stripes. Growing to 7″ long and living for thirty years, they like to live in sluggish and slow-moving water. They are omnivorous, and their conservation status is “Least Concern”.
The Western Spiny Softshell Turtle Apalone spinifera hartwegi
This member of the softshell family can be identified by the soft spines on its carapace. It also has that typical softshell pig-like snout. They are usually light brown or olive-green in color. They display sexual dimorphism, with males growing to half the size of females, which can grow to 20″. These are found throughout the state, are omnivorous, and are of the least concern from the conservation viewpoint.
The Yellow Mud Turtle Kinosternon flavescens flavescens
The yellow mud turtle doesn’t display much yellow. It does have a yellow rim to its carapace, but this little guy loves the mud, so it is often difficult to spot. They grow to 7″, they are omnivores, and they love to live in water with plenty of mud. They are of the least concern from a conservation viewpoint.
How Can I Help Turtles In Oklahoma?
If you want to help rescued turtles and other reptiles in Oklahoma, you can contact Snakes Alive!
