Turtles Flashcards
Side-necked turtles (family and characteristics)
- Suborder: Pleurodira
- 3 families
- restricted primarily to Southern Hemisphere
Australoamerican side-necked turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Chelidae
- flattened skulls, shells
African side-necked turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Pelomedusidae
- bottom walkers, not strong swimmers
Madagascan and South America side-necked turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Podocnemididae
- Largest known turtle ever
- flat shells, active swimmers
Hidden-necked turtles (suborder and characteristics)
- suborder: Cryptodira
- 11 families representing the majority of turtle diversity
Pig-nosed turtles (family, characteristics)
- Family: Carettochelyidae
- Nostrils resembling pig
Softshell turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Trionychidae
- fully aquatic, strong swimmers
- carapace covered in leathery skin
Spiny softshell turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Apalone spinifera
- can breathe through skin
- genetic sex determination
- scattered on western nose of NY
Mud and musk turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Kinosternidae
- musk glands on underside
Common musk turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Sternotherus odoratus
- Barbels under chin
- front of plastron hinged
- found in Oswego area and S NY
Eastern mud turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Kinosternon subrubrum
- doubly hinged plastron
- Only in long island
Snapping turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Chelydridae
- limbs, head, and tail cannot be retracted into shell
Common snapping turtles (name, range, characteristics)
- Chelydra serpentina
- symbiotic relationship with painted turtles
- saw toothed tail
- everywhere in NY
Sea turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Cheloniidae
- Complete marine except when nesting
- claws present
Loggerhead sea turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Caretta caretta
- named for large head
- the furniture turtle
- only in long island
Green sea turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Chelonia mydas
- Bask on shore for vitamin D
- named for greenish fat
- one pair of prefrontal plates
- only in long island
Atlantic hawksbill (name, range, characteristics)
- Eretmochelys imbricata
- two pairs of prefrontal plates
- source of turtle shell jewlery
- nuchal scute separated from costals
- only in long island
Kemp’s Ridley sea turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Lepidochelys kempii
- smallest sea turtle in NY
- nuchal scute touches costals
- only in long island
What species exhibits group nesting, and what is it called
- Kemp’s Ridley
- Arribada nesting
Leatherback sea turtles (family and characteristics)
-Family: Dermochelyidae
Leatherback sea turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Dermochelys coriacea
- largest extant turtle
- eats jellyfish
- carapace composed of osteoderms
- no claws
- only in long island
Threats to sea turtles
- pollution
- fisheries bycatch
- climate change
- coastal development
Pond and river turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Emydidae
- some have hinged plastrons
- no range given
Painted turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Chrysemys picta
- prefers slow moving waters
- red bars on marginal scutes
- found everywhere in NY
Spotted turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Clemmys guttata
- black with yellow dots on carapace and head
- vernal pools, uplants, wetlands (seasonally)
- Found in oswego and to the west, also S NY
Wood turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Glyptemys insculpta
- genetic sex determination
- Riverside or streamside, woodlands
- large home ranges
- spotty range throughout NY, common in S NY
Bog turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Glyptemys muhlenbergii
- smallest turtle in NY
- wet meadows and fens
- found in oswego and S NY
Blanding’s turtle (name, range, characteristics)
-Emydoidea blandingii
-smiley face, notched upper jaw
Found in N W S NY
Northern map turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Graptemys geographica
- contour map-like markings
- found along the Hudson
Eastern box turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Terrapene carolina carolina
- highly domed carapace
- plastron double hinged
- lives 100+ years
- S NY, some found in SW NY
Diamondback terrapin (name, range, characteristics)
- Malaclemys terrapin
- webbed feet, large hind limbs
- concentric grooves on scutes
- found only in long island
Red-eared slider (name, range, characteristics)
- Trachemys scripta elegans
- exotic
- subspecies of pond slider
- found in long island and few spots along NY
Yellowbelly slider (name, range, characteristics)
- Trachemys scripta scripta
- native to SE US
- pets that were released in the wild
- only long island
Eastern redbelly turtle (name, range, characteristics)
- Pseudemys rubriventris
- reddish to orange yellow plastron
- long island and central NY
Bigheaded turtles (family and characteristics)
- Family: Platysternidae
- china
Old world emydids (family and characteristics)
- Family: Geoemydidae
- S europe to japan, central and s america
Totoises (family and characteristics)
Family: Testudinidae
-head and limbs fully withdrawn
