MAP TURTLE

(GRAPTEMYS GEOGRAPHICA)

Map turtles congregate in clear, mud-bottomed sections of large rivers and bays and are often mutilated by powerboats. Five to 10 percent of several hundred marked turtles in a St. Lawrence River study bore propeller wounds. Many more probably died as a result of such wounds. Along with painted and snapping turtles, map turtles frequently drown in commercial fishing traps. Poor water quality renders them susceptible to shell rot, resulting in soft red lesions on the upper shell. Map turtles are the least studied turtle in the province, and the extent of the dangers they face remains unclear.

DESCRIPTION Olive brown to greenish shell with yellowish irregular concentric markings like a contour map (faint on females); dark green skin with wavy yellow lines on head, neck and legs; yellow lower shell

SHELL LENGTH 10–27 cm

RANGE Discontinuous populations along the Great Lakes and some larger rivers north to Pembroke and the French River

STATUS Species of special concern provincially and nationally

SPOTTED TURTLE

(CLEMMYS GUTTATA)

Poaching by turtle collectors, habitat loss and mortality on roads have combined to extirpate 40 percent of Ontario’s known populations of the diminutive spotted turtle. Generally, it is the first turtle species to emerge in April, migrating to shallow pools in sphagnum swamps, grass marshes and fens to bask and breed. In early autumn, spotted turtles gather in mossy pockets beneath submerged tree roots or rock shelves to spend the winter. Lying low for so much of the year may contribute to their impressive longevity, estimated to be up to at least 60 years.

DESCRIPTION Black with yellow spots on shell, legs and head; lower shell mostly black or yellow with black blotches

SHELL LENGTH 8–12 cm

RANGE Thinly distributed around Georgian Bay, southwestern and eastern Ontario

STATUS Endangered provincially and nationally

WOOD TURTLE

(CLEMMYS INSCULPTA)

In addition to encountering the dangers all turtles do, the wood turtle, Ontario’s most terrestrial turtle species, is also threatened by the illegal pet trade. In 1994, a wood turtle population of some 400 in southwestern Ontario suddenly declined by at least half, almost certainly due to poaching. While wood turtles probably once lived throughout most of southern and central Ontario, it is estimated that only 1,000 to 1,600 adults are left, in widely separated, genetically isolated populations.

DESCRIPTION Ridged, bumpy brown shell; brown skin with a reddish or orange tinge on neck and legs; yellow lower shell with black patches

SHELL LENGTH 13–20 cm

RANGE Sparsely scattered between northern Huron County, Midland and the Niagara Peninsula; separate populations in Algonquin Provincial Park and from Sault Ste. Marie to Sudbury

STATUS Endangered provincially, species of special concern Nationally

STINKPOT TURTLE

(STERNOTHERUS ODORATUS)

Crawling at the bottom of deep, thick weedbeds in muddy bays, slow streams and marshes, stinkpots are seldom seen, coming to the shallows at dusk to catch crayfish, tadpoles, snails and aquatic insects. Also known as musk turtles, they are named for a smelly yellowish liquid they release from glands at the edge of their upper shell if threatened. Stinkpots are known to live up to 55 years but, due to the destruction of wetlands, these turtles have disappeared from most of southern Ontario.

DESCRIPTION Brown or grey shell with black flecks, often green with algae; dark skin, with two light lines on sides of head; black and yellow lower shell

SHELL LENGTH 8–13 cm

RANGE Parry Sound to Severn River; Pembroke to Prince Edward County; a few locations on Lake Erie and the Detroit River

STATUS Threatened provincially and nationally

SNAPPING TURTLE

(CHELYDRA SERPENTINA)

Snapping turtles are far more widespread than most other turtle species. Their numbers are falling, however, and researchers argue that this species should be designated as at risk. Egg failure and deformities are common in snapping turtle populations where high levels of PCBs, dioxins, furans and other contaminants are found in southern Ontario’s water bodies. Even in Algonquin Provincial Park, a long-studied snapping turtle population has fallen by at least 50 percent.

DESCRIPTION Black, brown or olive shell; dark grey or brown skin; dull yellow or tan lower shell; long, jagged-ridged tail

SHELL LENGTH 20–50 cm

RANGE Southern Ontario north to about Temagami and Elliot Lake; scattered populations around Chapleau and Lake Superior west to Red Lake

STATUS Secure provincially and nationally