Description: The eastern chicken turtle (D. r. reticularia) is the turtle originally described by Latreille in 1801. It is the largest of the chicken turtles, with males measuring up to 6.5 inches and females up to 10.2 inches. It is distinguished from the other subspecies by the coloring of its carapace, which is olive to brown with a yellow rim. The plastron (lower shell) sometimes features a spot or indistinct splotch of color. Its outstretched neck is especially long, sometimes as long as the carapace itself.

Habitat: Chicken turtles are semiaquatic, equally comfortable in wetland habitats and on land. All three subspecies have similar preferences; they like quiet, still or slow-moving bodies of water such as shallow ponds, oxbow lakes, drainage ditches, borrow pits, marshes, swales, cypress swamps, and Carolina bays. Generally, the chicken turtle prefers water with a maximum depth of around 2.3 feet, but it is known to inhabit ponds up to 6.6 feet deep. It rarely inhabits moving water such as streams or rivers, but may sometimes colonize quieter rivulets or pools in the riparian zone. Furthermore, it strongly favors fresh water, avoiding brackish water wherever possible.

The chicken turtle thrives in bodies of water with dense aquatic vegetation and a soft, muddy substrate. Often these are ephemeral or temporary wetlands that readily dry out during the summer or in periods of drought. Such habitats tend to be free both of fish, which would provide competition for food, and potential predators such as alligators. When drying occurs, chicken turtles will migrate to the land and burrow into the soil or hide under foliage to avoid dry weather. Although they are well adapted to living terrestrially, they rarely abandon their original habitat even during extended dry spells, and will relocate to the water once it returns.

Although the chicken turtle does not generally inhabit islands, isolated groups are also known in the Outer Banks chain of barrier islands off North Carolina. These maritime forest habitats are prone to drying out easily in the summer and can be affected by storms and sea spray, but research into one of these groups found no meaningful differences in longevity, growth rate or sex ratio between members of this population and their mainland counterparts.

Range: The eastern chicken turtle is the most widespread of the three subspecies, with specimens known from eight states. The main bulk of its territory begins on the eastern banks of the Mississippi River in southeast Louisiana and extends eastward along the coastal plain of the Gulf of Mexico. Apart from the coastal region in the south of the state, it is not present in most of Mississippi, save for a small population in the drainage basin of the Tombigbee River. In Alabama, it is again commonly found throughout the coastal plain in the southern half of the state. It is also present further north in the Ridge and Valley region of the Appalachian mountain range, although less common.

Through Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, the eastern chicken turtle is again widely found throughout the coastal regions, although specimens have been recorded further inland in North Carolina. It is abundant in northern Florida, especially in the Panhandle region, where it is the only subspecies present. Its range begins to overlap with the Florida chicken turtle towards the north-central part of the state, with intergrades having been identified in Taylor, Levy, Gilchrist and Clay counties.

The eastern chicken turtle is also present in Virginia, although it is very rare there. A small colony was known to inhabit First Landing State Park in Virginia, but several studies have only managed to locate one adult female and it is thought this population may be extirpated. Around 40 miles to the west, a small group of around 30 adults is present in Isle of Wight County. Neither of these locations is contiguous with the rest of the turtle's range; it is unclear whether these populations are relics of a native and formerly more widespread group, or whether they were introduced to the area.

Found in these States: AL | FL | GA | MS | NC | SC | VA

Diet: Like many emydids, chicken turtles are almost completely carnivorous during the first year of their lives. However, they are unusual in preferring a carnivorous diet into adulthood. It has been suggested that this explains the smaller local populations of D. reticularia compared to other related turtles due to competition with fish for food, especially insects. In the wild they are known to prey on crayfish, invertebrates, tadpoles, vegetation and carrion, including dead fish and other animals.

Reproduction: The mating season of the chicken turtle can be estimated by the times of year in which male testicular volume is greatest, indicating maximum sperm production. This period varies by location; in Florida, the testes are largest during the hottest months of summer, while in South Carolina and the slightly cooler climate of Missouri this occurs in the late spring and early summer months, roughly May through July. In Texas, courtship may take place in the early spring (February to April) or fall (September to November). The chicken turtle's mating ritual is initiated by the male, who swims at an angle towards the female turtle until he is facing her head-on. He then attracts the female's attention by making short, rapid swimming motions, gazing at her and vibrating his outstretched foreclaws against her face and neck. Only if the female is receptive does copulation occur. There is no evidence of forced insemination as sometimes seen in other related turtles. Chicken turtle mating takes place in shallow waters, and reproduction can be disrupted by prolonged periods of dry weather.

Like mating, the timing of the nesting season depends on latitude. For example, in Florida nesting takes place continuously between mid-September and early March, with the possibility of an interruption if the winter weather is particularly cold. Further north, nesting may begin earlier in the year (around the end of August) but is always paused during the coldest months before resuming in the spring. In South Carolina and Arkansas, nesting and egg-laying may recommence in February, while in Virginia, in the northernmost reaches of the chicken turtle's range, it may not start again until March. This pattern of nesting in winter and hatching in spring is highly unusual; the chicken turtle is one of the only native North American turtles to nest at this time of year. Several reasons have been suggested for why this behavior developed. One hypothesis is that it allows the hatchlings to emerge in the spring when there is a good supply of food available and less competition from hatchlings of other turtle species that appear later in the year. Furthermore, predators of turtle eggs may be less likely to hunt for them in the spring when there are generally fewer to be found. Atypically among North American turtles, the female chicken turtle can retain fertilized, calcified eggs in her oviducts for several months after copulation, especially over the winter; these eggs will be laid in the spring once the nesting season resumes.

The female nests on land, often in loose soil, but sometimes in heavier ground. She digs out a cylindrical cavity with a depth of around 4 inches and a diameter at the opening of approximately 3 inches. Nests are usually built close to the water, although females are known to wander up to 306 yards in search of suitable sites. Once the nest is ready, the female deposits a clutch of between one and nineteen eggs. The eggs are white with a leathery or parchment-like shell, and elliptical in shape, measuring approximately 1.10 to 1.61 inches by 0.67 to 0.98 inches. Egg mass varies considerably; a review of eight studies found reported averages between 0.3 ounces and 0.4 ounces. The mass appears to be positively correlated with female body size and eggs laid in fall are significantly heavier than those laid in spring. Several minutes after laying, the female will fill in her nest, sweeping the dirt over the eggs with her hind legs until they are covered. Chicken turtles commonly lay two clutches of eggs per year,although in the uninterrupted nesting season of Florida, females have been known to produce as many as four.

Status: The chicken turtle population as a whole is currently considered secure and is thought to consist of at least 100,000 adults. Local populations are often small but stable, however the species is designated by NatureServe as S1 (critically imperiled) in Virginia and Missouri and S2 (imperiled) in Arkansas, Louisiana, North Carolina and Oklahoma. The chicken turtle does not appear on the IUCN's Red List of Threatened Species, although the Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group's own provisional list considers it Near Threatened. At the state level, the chicken turtle is protected by various local laws. In Virginia, where only around 30 adults are thought to remain, it has been listed as "vulnerable" since 1987. It is also considered at risk by the Alabama Natural Heritage Program; local regulations state that only two turtles may be kept and these must be for personal use (e.g. as pets). Along with other native reptiles, removal of chicken turtles from their natural habitat is regulated in several states throughout its range including Texas, Georgia and North Carolina. The chicken turtle is subject to a ban on commercial taking in Arkansas, where it is "extremely rare". In Missouri, where until 1995 no sightings had been recorded for at least 33 years, it is listed as an endangered species, making hunting illegal.

Taxonomy: