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Abbreviation Legend

  • (CE) - Criticially Endangered
  • (CI) - Critically Imperiled
  • (E) - Endangered
  • (I) - Introduced
  • (IM) - Imperiled
  • (NT) - Near Threatened
  • (T) - Threatened
  • (V) - Vulnerable
  • (**) - Recent Classification Change
Home »» Turtles & Tortoises »» Kinosternodae (Mud & Musk Turtles)

Kinosternidae (Mud and Musk Turtles) of the United States


Musk and Mud Turtles can be distinguished by a small, smooth oval shaped carapace bearing 11 marginal scutes on each side. Rear margin of the carapace is not serrated, and the plastron is single or double hinged with 10 or 11 scutes. Females have short tails, those of males extend well beyond the carapace margin and end in a blunt or spinelike horny nail. The inned surface of males hind legs have two small patches of tilted scales

All musk and mud turtles have 2 pairs of musk glands beneath the border of the carapace. The secretions are very offensive, thus the common names of "stinkpot" and "musk turtle".

Although occasionally encountered out of water, these turtles are strongly aquatic and are usually seen crawling along the bottom. They sun themselves in shallow water or amid floating vegetation with only the center portion of the shell exposed.

Each year females may lay one or more clutches of elliptical eggs with brittle porcelainlike shells, translucent pink, bluish-white or banded with stark white.

 

There are 13 species of Mud and Musk Turtles in the United States.

Arizona Mud Turtle
(Kinosternon arizonense)

Striped Mud Turtle
(Kinosternon baurii)

Yellow Mud Turtle
(Kinosternon flavescens)

Chihuahuan Mud Turtle
(Kinosternon hirtipes)
(NT)

Sonoran Mud Turtle
(Kinosternon sonoriense)

Florida Mud Turtle
(Kinosternon steindachneri)

Common Mud Turtle
(Kinosternon subrubrum)

Razor-Backed Musk Turtle
(Sternotherus carinatus)
(CE)

Flattened Musk Turtle
(Sternotherus depressus)

Intermediate Musk Turtle
(Sternotherus intermedius)

Loggerhead Musk Turtle
(Sternotherus minor)

Eastern Musk Turtle or "Stinkpot"
(Sternotherus odoratus)

Stripe-Necked Musk Turtle
(Sternotherus peltifer)

 

 

 

 

Recommended Books at Amazon.com


Turtles of North America: An Illustrated Field Guide to the Turtles of the Continental United States and Canada     Turtles of the United States and Canada     Common Box Turtles     Complete North American Box Turtle



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Disclaimer: ITIS taxonomy is based on the latest scientific consensus available, and is provided as a general reference source for interested parties. However, it is not a legal authority for statutory or regulatory purposes. While every effort has been made to provide the most reliable and up-to-date information available, ultimate legal requirements with respect to species are contained in provisions of treaties to which the United States is a party, wildlife statutes, regulations, and any applicable notices that have been published in the Federal Register. For further information on U.S. legal requirements with respect to protected taxa, please contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

 
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