The Native Freshwater Turtles Of Alabama
Alabama could be considered to be Turtle Central of the United States. There are no less than thirty-two species of freshwater turtle that call the state home. The Alabama red-belly turtle is the state reptile. In addition to this roll call of turtles, there are sea turtles to be found off of Alabama’s Gulf Coast.
The Geography Of Alabama
Alabama has a humid subtropical climate. It is well forested, and there are four national parks. The Mobile river system is an important environment for turtles. Alabama offers a wide variety of habitats that are very conducive to the thriving and survival of turtles. Climate change is of concern for turtles, with floods and fires having the potential to destroy fragile habitats.
Can I Keep Pet Turtles In Alabama?
There are no state restrictions on keeping turtles in Alabama. The Federal restrictions on sea turtles and on turtles less than four inches in length do apply.
Can I Catch Turtles From The Wild In Alabama?
Yes, you can, for private use – not for commercialization. You are only allowed to use a dip net or a hook and line.
Can I Commercialize Turtles In Alabama?
You can farm turtles for the fed or food trade, but you must have a license from the state to do so. You are not allowed to breed, or import for breeding, non-indigenous turtles.
The Alabama Map Turtle Graptemys pulchra
The Alabama Map Turtle has a range of colors from brown to black, from dark brown to olive green. The carapace, or upper shell, is patterned a little bit like a map. Along the length of the carapace, you will notice a line of knobbed keels. These patterns and knobs tend to fade and wear with age. The plastron, or lower shell, is yellow. They have dark skin with yellow lines They exhibit sexual dimorphism – a wide variation in size between males and females. Males grow to five inches, females to as much as ten inches. They can live to be fifty years of age.
Alabama map turtles enjoy the typical turtle environment of slow-moving or even stagnant waters. Ponds, small streams, lakes, and ditches are home to this turtle. They are omnivores, eating fish, insects, weeds vegetables, fruit, and crustaceans. They nest several times a year, as their conservation status is “of least concern”.
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 pounds 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”. (Source: www.iucnredlist.org)
Alabama Red-Belly Turtle Pseudemys alabamensis
The carapace, or upper shell, of this turtle, is generally dark brown in color, with orange or red coloring along the edges. The plastron, or lower shell, is a warm red or orange, and it is this that gives the turtle its name. Juvenile Alabama red-belly turtles display bright colors but adults tend to fade in color. They have brown or black skin, with orange or yellow stripes.
This turtle can live to be sixty years old. They are fairly large turtles, with a plastron length of up to fourteen inches. These like lazy, slow-moving waters, and are often found in small rivers and canals. They live on a diet of water weeds and riverside vegetation. These are not considered to be threatened.
Barbour’s Map Turtle Graptemys barbouri
Like all map turtles, the Barbour’s map turtle is protected in Alabama. These turtles have gray shells with distinctive lemon-colored swirling markings, like the contours on a map. They have very prominent spines. Their skin is also marked in yellow and can range from green to black in color. There is a distinct difference in the size of the males and females, with the males growing to a mere 5 ½” in length, whereas the females can be more than twice as large, growing to 12″ long. The head of the female is noticeably large in proportion to the rest of its body. Barbour’s map turtle is the largest of the map turtle family.
This turtle feeds mainly on fish, crustaceans, and water insects. Because they are so attractive, the Barbour’s Map turtle, as well as others in the map turtle family, has frequently been captured for the pet trade, and so it is now considered to be under threat.
Black-Knobbed Map Turtle Graptemys nigrinoda nigrinoda
This small turtle can be recognized by the map pattern on its carapace, or upper shell, combined with a very prominent vertebral keel which is dark brown or black. The plastron or lower shell is lemon-yellow with dark patterning. The skin of this turtle is dark, with yellow stripes and blotches. They can live for up to fifty years.
Another turtle which displays sexual dimorphism, with the males growing to a tiny carapace length between three and five inches, and females reaching as much as ten inches in carapace length. Black-knobbed map turtles need to live in highly vegetated, slow-moving, or stagnant water. They eat more or less anything, including fish, crustaceans, mollusks, water plants, fruit, and insects.
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. They are considered to be of least concern, with regard to conservation status.
Common Musk Turtle (Stinkpot) Sternotherus odoratus
Poor stinkpot. He only makes a bad smell when he’s scared. When he’s happy and contented, he is just a normal, everyday guy.
Growing to just shy of five inches, they have a steep upper shell, or carapace, that is dark brown in color. Their dark-skinned head features yellow stripes and a couple of barbels under their chin. They like to live in shallow, slow-moving, or even still water with a muddy bottom that they can hide in. They like water that has vegetation; they tend to hide out during the day and hunt at night. Like most turtles, they are omnivorous, eating more or less whatever comes along.
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. It is not considered threatened at this time.
Eastern Box Turtle Terrapene carolina carolina
This turtle is a really beautiful creature with a black or brown carapace marked with exquisite yellow patterning. They grow to around 5″ long. The males are more brightly colored than the females and have pink or red eyes, whereas the females have dark brown eyes. Like all box turtles they can seal themselves up snugly and tight as their plastron, or lower shell, can hinge up to protect the soft body, head, tail, and legs.
They hunt during the day, eating small insects, crickets, worms, mollusks, and crustaceans. If the weather gets too hot or too dry, they will dig themselves a burrow where they can hide in a temperature and humidity that feels right.
Eastern Mud Turtle Kinosternon subrubrum subrubrum
The Eastern mud turtle is often just called the common mud turtle. Even though this turtle only grows to be 4″ long, they are known for having a ferocious bite. Although they are toothless, they have very strong jaws that can bear down hard on a careless finger.
They live to be over fifty years old. These turtles are avid swimmers, and they enjoy living in rivers with gravel bottoms. These form their favorite hunting grounds, where they search for insects, mollusks, crustaceans, and more. They are known to be exceptionally messy eaters, so if you plan to keep one as a pet, be sure that you have an excellent filtration system in your aquarium. They are not considered to be under threat as a species.
Eastern Chicken Turtle Deirochelys reticularia reticularia
The Eastern chicken turtle has a carapace that s more egg-shaped than is usual for most turtles. It is black or brown in color, with delicate yellow or cream patterning. The plastron, or lower shell, is yellow, and its skin is dark brown with yellow stripes. This pretty turtle can live to be thirty years old.
They generally grow to a maximum of ten inches long, with the males being a little smaller than the females, although the size differences are not as pronounced as with some species.
They can be found hanging out in slow-moving backwaters, canals, streams, ponds, and marshes. These are often found close to sandy areas, where they make their nests. They nest during the spring and summer. They are considered to be of the least concern as regards their conservation status.
Eastern Painted Turtle Chrysemys picta picta
The Eastern painted turtle is a rather lovely creature, with a dark shell patterned with light red stripes and edges to its carapace. They can grow to 7″ long, the females tending to be larger than the males. This pretty turtle is very popular as a pet.
They have distinctive yellow and brown striped heads and faces, and they are water lovers, often being found close to the shore. These can even tolerate brackish water. They hibernate during the winter, and they spend most of their life in the water.
Because the shells of their eggs are very hard, they are not easily eaten by predators, and so hatching rates are good. This means that they are not considered to be under threat, as they can keep up their numbers with their successful reproduction strategy.
Eastern River Cooter Pseudemys concinna concinna
The Eastern river cooter is one of the bigger freshwater turtles that you can spot in the United States. Adults can grow to 16 in length. They have dark shells and look out for a “C” shaped mark at the back of the carapace. The plastron, or lower shell, is yellow or orange in color with darker markings which are more prominent on younger animals.
The Eastern river cooter has a very unusual attribute. They have a sac at the end of their tails, called the cloaca bursae. This sac allows them to breathe underwater. Because they can stay underwater for long periods, they can be hard to spot and study. They prefer living in clear, deep, flowing water, unlike many turtles that typically enjoy slow-moving water. Their diet is unusual too, being mainly water plants and algae, with the odd insect thrown in.
Eastern Spiny Softshell Apalone spinifera spinifera
One of the largest freshwater turtles in the United States, the eastern spiny softshell has a flat shell that feels a bit like rubber. There are small spines along the edge of the shell, giving it its name. Females are large, growing to about 19″ long, whereas males only make it to about 10″ long. They have a very pointed, almost pig-like nose. In color, it ranges from brown to brownish yellow. The plastron is pale lemon to white in color. It has webbed feet that are useful because it spends almost all of its life in the water. It loves to swim and prefers clear waterways with little vegetation.
Ernst’s Map Turtle Graptemys ernsti
Also known as the Escambia map turtle, this turtle has a high ridged carapace in shades of brown and black. The scutes around the edges of the carapace are lined with yellow circular borders. The plastron is hingeless and yellow. The skin is black with alternating thick and thin yellow stripes.
Females will grow up to 10″ and males to 5″. The reason for this difference in size can be accounted for by the female turtle’s reproductive requirements. They can live for up to fifty years.
Very restricted in its range, it can be found mainly in the Pensacola drainage system. Recently it has also been found in the Pea and Choctawhatchee Rivers. It lives in medium-sized and large rivers where it can find fallen logs and sand bars or flat stones for basking. This turtle is an omnivore, and the species is designated as of least concern in terms of conservation.
Flattened Musk Turtle Sternotherus depressus
The flattened musk turtle is found only in the Black Warrior River watershed in Alabama. It is a tiny turtle, growing to just three to four inches long. The carapace is brown and flattened, and the plastron is pinkish-yellow. The skin is a greenish shade with darker brown or black lines. The flattened musk turtle can be found in shallow streams with rocky bottoms, above the fall line. They are excellent indicators of environmental health as they can only thrive in clean, unpolluted water. Their conservation status is “threatened.”
Florida Cooter Turtle Pseudemys floridana floridana
This turtle is also known as the coastal plain cooter. It’s a large turtle, growing to 13″ and weighing seven pounds. It has a dark brown carapace with light yellow lines and a very clear yellow colored plastron. This is omnivorous but it tends to eat vegetation preferentially. It can be found in slow-moving rivers, lakes, ponds sloughs, and marshes.
The Florida Softshell Turtle Apalone ferox
This is one of the turtle species that exhibit sexual dimorphism. In other words, the males and the females look distinctly different. In this case, the difference is in size. Males grow to just 12″ long, whereas females can grow to twice the size – 24″ long. The theory is that the females need to be bigger to accommodate egg production.
In color, the Florida soft shell turtle has dark brown or green carapace with a gray or white plastron, or lower shell. They prefer large expanses of water with a sandy bottom. As the name suggests, this is a Florida native species. If you want to find out more about the conservation and rescue of this turtle, check out The Florida soft shell rescue.
Gulf Coast Smooth Softshell Apalone mutica calvata
Gulf Coast smooth softshell turtle ranges from dark brown to dark olive green. Its shell is both flatter and rounder than the usual turtle shell, and of course, it has a leathery texture. Females tend to have a blotchier pattern on their carapace than males have.
They grow to up to 13″long and can live for sixty years. They can be found in waters that have a soft substrate for hiding and hunting. These eat a wide variety of food, including fish, insects, mollusks, crustaceans, berries, vegetation, eggs, tadpoles, and more. In terms of conservation, they are of the least concern.
Gulf Coast Spiny Softshell Apalone spinifera aspera
Here we have another turtle where the sizes of males and females are quite different. In this case, males grow to 12″ long, females to 24″long. They have a lifespan of up to sixty years. The shell of this turtle is soft and leathery. The coloring is dark brown with yellow spots, and also black pots, and a darker rim around the edge of the upper shell. The skin is pale on the belly, and the head and neck are brown and yellow in color, the head having a sharply pointed nose. The male has a longer tail than the female.
The Gulf Coast spiny softshell turtle is a strong swimmer, with clawed webbed feet. They live in rivers, large ponds, and the bays of lakes, in fact, anywhere that there is a reasonably large stretch of water. They eat invertebrates, hunting for them under rocks and fallen logs at the bottom of their watery home.
Hieroglyphic River Cooter Pseudemys concinna hieroglyphica
This turtle gets its name from its beautifully patterned carapace. Dark brown in color and patterned in red and orange, it has dark skin striped with yellow. It is altogether an outstanding-looking creature.
It can reach up to 13″ in length and lives for up to forty years. This prefers to live in flowing streams, but it can also be found in ponds and lakes. It is omnivorous, and its conservation status is of the least concern.
Loggerhead Musk Turtle Sternotherus minor minor
This is one of the smallest turtles in the US, growing to just four inches long. It has a large head in relation to its body and very pronounced scutes running laterally along its carapace. They live to be up to forty years of age and can be found in many slow-moving waters in Alabama. They are carnivorous and are not considered to be of conservation concern.
Midland Painted Turtle Chrysemys picta marginata
The Midland painted turtle is one of the very lovely painted turtle family. It has a lovely black carapace with delicate red lines and a red patterned edge. The plastron is golden, the neck has red stripes and the head has yellow stripes. It is one of the most readily observed freshwater turtles throughout the United States. This subspecies is identified by a gray mark that can be seen on the plastron.
Females grow to be as much as ten inches long, and the males are a bit smaller, as is the case with many turtle species. This difference in size is accounted for by the need for the females to produce and store eggs.
They enjoy water with plenty of vegetation and a muddy bottom. They need to bask in the sun, and so look for rocks and fallen logs. In the winter, they hibernate. Painted turtles are thought to have been around for fifteen million years – they are obviously survivors.
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 and are not considered to be under threat.
Mississippi Diamondback Terrapin Malaclemys terrapin pileata
This turtle has a black or brown carapace with a yellow plastron. It has gray skin with black or dark brown spots. It grows to around 5″ long, and can live for up to thirty-five years. Males grow to 8″ long, females to 10″ long. They are carnivores that can often be found in brackish waters near the coast. Their conservation status is “vulnerable”
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”.
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. They are carnivorous and enjoy eating mollusks and crustaceans. These are happy in most kinds of fresh water and are not considered to be under threat.
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. These generally grow to about 8″ long, but the occasional individual can grow to be quite a bit larger. They 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 quiet 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.
Southern Black-knobbed Map Turtle Graptemys nigrinoda delticola
This turtle has dark olive in color and it is patterned rather like a relief map. The most important feature for recognizing this map turtle is the extremely pronounced vertebral keel, which takes the form of three blunt knobs. The plastron is yellow with black or dark brown patterning. The skin of the Black-knobbed Map Turtle is generally black or dark brown and has attractive yellow stripes. They can live to be fifty years old.
Males are quite tiny, growing to just five inches long, whereas females are usually as much as ten inches in length. Map turtles prefer water that is stagnant or slow-moving, and which holds a lot of vegetation. They are mostly found in slow-moving rivers, ponds, and lakes. They are omnivores, and their conservation status is “of least concern”.
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.
Three-toed Box Turtle Terrapene carolina triunguis
The three-toed box turtle is the official reptile of the State of Missouri and can be found throughout the south-central part of the United States. It gets its name from the three toes that can be found on its back feet – but confusingly, some three-toed turtles have four toes. It’s likely that these are turtles that have interbred with other subspecies of box turtles that enter their range.
This turtle grows up to around 7″ long, and the dome on its shell is set a little bit further back than in other species. The three-toed turtle eats a wide range of food, from earthworms, crickets, and slugs to fruit, to eggs, and to mushrooms. It’s notable that three-toed box turtles really don’t like to be watched when they are eating – so if you have one as a pet, give them their privacy.
Yellow-Bellied Slider Trachemys scripta scripta
This slider is so called because, like all sliders, it slides back into the water when startled. The carapace of this turtle is brown, sometimes striped in yellow, and the plastron is yellow – hence the name. they sometimes exhibit an “S” shaped marking on their face. Females can grow to 13″ long, but the males only reach around 9″. They can live to be forty years old. Found mainly in places where there is lots of vegetation, algae, debris rafts, and lily pads, the yellowbelly slider has a diet of small crustaceans, fish, mollusks, insects, and tadpoles.
Turtle Rescue In Alabama
If you find an injured or sick turtle in Alabama, here is a link to organizations that may be able to help. There is a lot of interest in turtles in Alabama, and you may like to join one or more of the turtle societies that you can find listed at the previous link.