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Western US
Western US| Subspecies: | 2 |
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| Est. World Population: | |
| CITES Status: | NOT LISTED |
| IUCN Status: | NOT LISTED |
| U.S. ESA Status: | NOT LISTED |
| Body Length: | 3 ½ - 7 ½ inches |
| Tail Length: | 1 - 2 inches |
| Shoulder Height: | |
| Weight: | |
| Top Speed: | |
| Jumping Ability: | (Horizontal) |
| Life Span: | in the Wild |
| Life Span: | in Captivity |
| Sexual Maturity: | (Females) |
| Sexual Maturity: | (Males) |
| Clutch Size: | 3 - 11 eggs |
| Incubation Period: | |
Identification:
ADULTS:
Carapace low; olive, dark brown, or blackish, occasionally without pattern but usually with a network of spots, lines, or dashes of brown or black that often radiate from the growth centers of the shields. Plastron with 6 pairs of shields - yellowish, blotched with blackish or dark brown, occasionally unmarked. Limbs with prominent scales, flecked and lined with black. Head with spots or network of black. Crushing surface of upper jaw usually smooth or rippled. In males, the throat is lighter, and shell usually flatter and less heavily marked than in the female.
YOUNG:
Tail nearly as long as shell. Carapace uniformly brown or olive above with yellow markings at edge of marginals; shields with numerous small tubercles. Plastron yellowish, with large irregular central black figure. Head, limbs, and tail marked with dusky and pale yellow.
Carapace low; olive, dark brown, or blackish, occasionally without pattern but usually with a network of spots, lines, or dashes of brown or black that often radiate from the growth centers of the shields. Plastron with 6 pairs of shields - yellowish, blotched with blackish or dark brown, occasionally unmarked. Limbs with prominent scales, flecked and lined with black. Head with spots or network of black. Crushing surface of upper jaw usually smooth or rippled. In males, the throat is lighter, and shell usually flatter and less heavily marked than in the female.
YOUNG:
Tail nearly as long as shell. Carapace uniformly brown or olive above with yellow markings at edge of marginals; shields with numerous small tubercles. Plastron yellowish, with large irregular central black figure. Head, limbs, and tail marked with dusky and pale yellow.
Subspecies:
Northwestern Pond Turtle - Washington, Oregon, Northern California
Southwestern Pond Turtle - Southern California, Northern Baja California
Habitat:
A thoroughly aquatic turtle of ponds, marshes, rivers, streams, and irrigation ditches that typically have a rocky or muddy bottom and where watercress, cattails, water lilies, or other aquatic vegetation is found.
Biomes: woodland, grassland, and open forest.
Biomes: woodland, grassland, and open forest.
Range:
Western Washington south to Northwest Baja California, chiefly west of the Cascade-Sierran crest. Outlying areas are Mojave River in California and Truckee and Carson Rivers in Nevada. Usually found from sea level to around 6000 ft.
Life Cycle:
Clutch of 3 - 11 eggs, laid April - August; the time varying with the locality.
Food & Hunting:
Eats plants, insects, worms, fish, and carrion.
Similar Species:
Chrysemys picta - Painted Turtle
Trachemys scripta - Pond Slider