The ringed map turtle or ringed sawback (''Graptemys oculifera'') is a species of
turtle in the family
Emydidae
Emydidae (Latin ''emys'' (freshwater tortoise) + Ancient Greek εἶδος (''eîdos'', “appearance, resemblance”)) is a family of testudines (turtles) that includes close to 50 species in 10 genera. Members of this family are commonly calle ...
endemic to the southern
United States.
Geographic range
It is frequently found in the
Pearl River system in
Louisiana and
Mississippi. It shares this range with the
Pearl River map turtle
The Pearl River map turtle (''Graptemys pearlensis'') is a species of emydid turtle native to the southern United States. According to a study done in January 2017, the species ''G. pearlensis'' was significantly less abundant in the Pearl River ...
(''G. pearlensis'').
Description
Male turtles may attain a
carapace
A carapace is a Dorsum (biology), dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tor ...
length of 10 cm (4 in). Females are larger, and may attain a carapace length of 22 cm (8.5 in). On the carapace are light-colored rings, which are thicker than the rings on ''
Graptemys nigrinoda
The black-knobbed map turtle (''Graptemys nigrinoda''), formerly known as the black-knobbed sawback, is a small to medium-sized aquatic turtle with light gray skin.Blankenship, Emmett L., Brian P. Butterfield, and James C. Goodwin. 2008. "''Grap ...
''.
[ Conant, R. 1975. ''A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Second Edition.'' Houghton Mifflin. Boston. xviii + 429 pp. + 48 plates. (hardcover), (paperback). (''Graptemys oculifera'', p. 59 + Plate 8 + Map 17.)]
References
Further reading
*
Baur, G. 1890. Two New Species of Tortoises from the South. Science 16 (405): 262–263. (''Malacoclemmys oculifera'')
* Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group 1996.
''Graptemys oculifera'' 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 29 July 2007.
Taxidermists also play a big role in the way these turtles act.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q305919
Graptemys
Endemic fauna of the United States
Reptiles of the United States
ESA threatened species
Taxa named by Georg Baur
Reptiles described in 1890
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot