Description: Small aquatic species. Facts. These spots make the spotted turtle difficult to see in its habitat of darkly stained water with dappled light. Spotted turtles reside in discontinuous portions of eastern North America, including pars of the Midwest (including Illinois), the Eastern Seaboard and the south. Throughout the species’ range, wetlands formerly inhabited by Spotted Turtles have been drained and filled, or they have been rendered unsuitable by pollution, stream channelization, impoundments, eutrophication or other adverse impacts. Spotted turtle population trends have not been well documented. The spotted turtle has tiny yellow spots on the head, neck, legs, and carapace, with a black background color.
• Work with SRS-DOE, SR-USFS, and SREL to protect spotted turtle habitat on the Crackerneck Wildlife Management Area on SRS. Some examples of ideal spotted turtle habitat are old flooded cranberry bogs, sphagnum bogs, drainage or irrigation canals, swampy meadows and cypress swamps. Help this Species. Amazon turtles and endangered fish at risk. Populations have been recorded in Quebec and Ontario. Upland habitats also are used for nesting, aestivating, and travel corridors between wetlands. • Consider spotted turtle habitat needs when managing Carolina bays and floodplain ecosystems. Spotted turtles are the most cold-tolerant Ontario turtle species and are the first to emerge to bask in the spring — sometimes sunning themselves next to mounds of melting snow. Status. • Consider spotted turtle habitat needs when managing Carolina bays and floodplain ecosystems. As habitats preferred by spotted turtles disappear, the species dwindles.
Some spotted turtles migrate between different microhabitats for additional food sources. The spotted turtle (Clemmys guttata), the only species of the genus Clemmys, is a small, semi-aquatic turtle that reaches a carapace length of 8–12 cm (3.1–4.7 in) upon adulthood. Spotted turtles have black upper shells with many random small bright yellow spots. View all facts . A turtle’s upper shell is formally known as a carapace.
Habitat Spotted turtles require large intact landscapes with a diversity of wetland types and sizes, and they tolerate only limited development of uplands and disturbance by humans (Fowle 2001, Joyal et al. Avoid animal-skin products, even those marked “faux,” to ensure you’re not contributing to the illegal hunting of this species. The yellow-spotted turtle is IUCN listed as vulnerable.
Spotted Turtle: Facts • Spotted turtles are considered an endangered species, and it is listed under the provincial Endangered Species Act,... • They are also called “polka dot” turtles, owing to their coloring. In some areas this wariness is so extreme that turtles may drop from basking sites if cars on nearby roadways even slow down. • Work with SRS-DOE, SR-USFS, and SREL to protect spotted turtle habitat on the Crackerneck Wildlife Management Area on SRS. Turtles in the wild often live more than 25 years, but those in zoos have been known to live past 100. However,the total area of suitable habitat for a particular Spotted Turtle colony often does not exceed these areas, at least in the northern part of the range (Ernst, Lovich, and Barbour, 1994; Harding, 1997). Upland habitats also are used for nesting, aestivating, and travel corridors between wetlands. The spotted turtle in many areas is protected from collection due to the extirpation of large numbers of colonies by habitat loss and overcollection.
Image courtesy of the Tauiry Village Extractivist Fisherfolk Community.