The turtles, snakes, frogs and other reptiles and amphibians of New England and the north/Turtles
TURTLES. Testudinata.
1. Snapping Turtle. Chelydra serpentina.
Length, twenty-four inches; dull blackish-brown, often covered with moss; head, large: eyes, near together, looking upwards; neck beset with warts; plates of shield with slightly embossed lines and showing ridge of backbone; hind edge of shield with large saw like teeth; lower shield, small; tail crested with horny large teeth.
Found in waters everywhere; rarely on land, except in breeding time.2. Alligator Snapper. Macrochelys lacertina.
Length, forty inches; like No. 1, but eyes far apart, looking sideways: plates of shield smooth, with an elevation on upper hind corner, forming three ridges on back. Very strong and ferocious.
Western and Southern.
Length, eight inches; dark reddish-brown, with oyster-shell-like embossed lines; yellow-orange beneath, each plate having a black blotch in the outside corner.
4. Mud Turtle. Kinosternon pennsylvanicum.
Length, four inches; similar to No. 1; head with lighter spots; shield smooth, and shows no backbone ridge; no teeth on hind edge; lower shield large, and can close the shell with it.
Southern.
5. Musk Turtle. Aromachelys odoratus.
Length, six inches; black, head with two yellow stripes on each side; shield smooth, but shows ridge of back bone, yellowish underneath. Emits a strong odor of musk.
6. Keeled Turtle. Aromachelys carinatus.
Like No. 5, but plates overlapping each other; dusky, marked with black edges and lines; no stripes on head.
Southern and Western.
Length, ten inches; ashy brown, with black engraved lines on shield, and specks on head, neck and legs; face, horn color, orange underneath.
Highly esteemed for food. Southern.
8. Map Turtle. Malaclemmys geographicus.
Length, six inches; blackish-brown, with rusty irregular lines; lower jaw with spoon-like tip. Western.
9. Hieroglyphic Turtle. Pseudemys hieroglyphica.
Length, six inches; blackish, with yellow worm-like marks; head with yellow stripes.
Western.
10. Painted Turtle. Chrysemys picta.
Length, eight inches; dark-bluish or greenish-gray; each plate lighter-edged; middle and side plates in one row: edge of shield, sides and underneath ornamented with red and yellow lines; smooth.
11. Edged Turtle. Chrysemys marginata.
Like No. 10 but plates of shield alternating as usual, and side plates with embossed lines. Western.
12. Spotted Turtle. Chelopus gutlatus.
Length, four-and-a-half inches; black, with round yellow-orange spots, irregularly scattered; shield, very convex: no backbone ridge.
13. Speckled Turtle. Emys meleagris.
Length, eight inches; black, with somewhat regularly dispersed, irregular, yellowish specks. Southern and Western.
14. Common Box Turtle. Cistudo carolina.
Length, ten inches; reddish dark-brown, with yellowish buff markings and dots; variable in design.
Southern.
15. Soft-shelled Turtle. Aspidonectes spinifer.
Length, sixteen inches; olive, mottled with darker; front of shield beset with warts; head, striped.
Western.
16. Leather Turtle. Amyda mutica.
Length, twelve inches; like No. 15, but no warts on shield and no stripes on head.
Western.
17. Logger-head Turtle. Thalassochelys caretta.
Reaches a weight of 450 pounds; greenish-black. Found in the open sea and also near Europe.