Painted Turtle

Overview

The most widespread native turtle of North America, with a smooth, flat shell whose margins are painted with red, yellow, and black patterns. It is a superb basker, often stacked several high on logs. It is renowned for extreme cold tolerance, with hatchlings able to survive frozen in mud by supercooling.

Classification

The Painted Turtle belongs to the suborder Cryptodira (hidden-neck turtles) and the family Emydidae. It is a largely North American family of mostly semi-aquatic freshwater turtles, including the box turtles that are largely terrestrial. Its scientific name is Chrysemys picta.

Appearance & Distinguishing Features

They typically have smooth, low-domed or moderately domed shells, webbed feet, and a marked pattern of stripes or blotches; box turtles have a hinged plastron that can close completely.

Habitat & Distribution

They inhabit ponds, lakes, rivers, marshes, and damp woodlands across North America, with a few species in Eurasia. Some box turtles are almost entirely terrestrial.

Diet & Feeding

They are generally omnivorous, eating aquatic plants, insects, fish, amphibians, and carrion, with plant matter increasing in adult box turtles.

Behavior & Conservation

Many bask communally and overwinter by burrowing into mud. The red-eared slider is one of the most widely kept pet turtles, whereas several box turtles are protected owing to declining wild populations.

Popularity & Recognition

The red-eared slider in particular has become the world's most common pet turtle and an invasive species in many regions.