''Pseudemys'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of large, herbivorous, freshwater turtles of the eastern United States and adjacent northeast Mexico. They are often referred to as cooters, which stems from ''kuta'', the word for turtle in the Bambara and

Malinké The Mandinka or Malinke are a West African ethnic group primarily found in southern Mali, The Gambia, southern Senegal and eastern Guinea. Numbering about 11 million, they are the largest subgroup of the Mandé peoples and one of the largest eth ...

languages, brought to America by enslaved people from Africa.

Etymology

The generic name ''Pseudemys'' is derived from the Greek words, ''pseudes'' meaning false or misleading, and ''emydos'' a freshwater turtle, implying a resemblance to, but not included in the genus ''

Emys ''Emys'' is a small genus within the family Emydidae. The genus ('' sensu lato''), consisting primarily of freshwater pond turtles, is endemic to Europe. It is the only genus in the Emydidae outside of North America. Species The following two ...

''.Seidel, Michael and Carl H. Ernst. 1996.
Pseudemys
'' Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 625: 1-7 pp. The trivial names, or specific epithets, of five of the species are toponyms, named for places where the species were first discovered including, the Florida peninsular (''P. peninsularis''),Seidel, Michael and Carl H. Ernst. 1998.
Pseudemys peninsularis
'' Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 669: 1-4 pp. the

Suwannee River The Suwannee River (also spelled Suwanee River or Swanee River) is a river that runs through south Georgia southward into Florida in the Southern United States. It is a wild blackwater river, about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrog ...

(''P. suwanniensis''),Seidel, Michael and Michael J. Dreslik. 1996.
Pseudemys concinna
'' Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 626: 1-12 pp.

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

(''P. alabamensis''),McCoy, Clarence. J. and Richard C. Vogt. 1985.
Pseudemys alabamensis
'' Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 371: 1-2 pp.

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

(''P. floridana''), and

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

(''P. texana'').Etchberger, Cory R. and John B. Iverson. 1990.
Pseudemys texana
'' Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 485: 1-2 pp. Two are patronyms, or eponyms, honoring prominent zoologists, George Robert Zug, curator of Amphibians and Reptiles at the Smithsonian,

National Museum of Natural History The National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) is a natural history museum administered by the Smithsonian Institution, located on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., United States. It has free admission and is open 364 days a year. With 4.4 ...

(''P. gorzugi''),Ernst, Carl H. 1990.
Pseudemys gorzugi
'' Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 461: 1-2 pp. and George Nelson, botanist, zoologist, and Chief Taxidermist at the

Museum of Comparative Zoology The Museum of Comparative Zoology (formally the Agassiz Museum of Comparative Zoology and often abbreviated to MCZ) is a zoology museum located on the grounds of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is one of three natural-history r ...

, Harvard (''P. nelsoni'').Beolens, Bo, Michael Watkins, and Michael Grayson (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles.'' Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ages 188 &294 The other specific epithets are derived from Latin: ''P. concinna'', from ''concinnus'' meaning neat, trim, or skillfully joined, likely in reference to the relatively smooth, stream-lined shell, or possibly the colors and patterns on the carapace;Smith, Hobart M. and Rozella B. Smith. 1979. ''Synopsis of the Herpetofauna of Mexico, Vol VI: Guide to Mexican Turtles, Bibliographic Addendum III.'' John Johnson. North Bennington, Vermont. 1044 pp. age 444 and ''P. rubriventris'', from ''rubidus'' reddish, and ''venter'' belly, referring the red color of the plastron.Graham, Terry E. 1991.
Pseudemys rubriventris
'' Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 510: 1-4 pp.

Taxonomy

The genus ''Pseudemys'' has an extensive, complicated, and at times contentious taxonomic history. Historically the genus has been intertwined with other genera, at times included in other genera or having members of other genera include in it ('' Chrysemys'', '' Clemmys'', ''

'', ''Ptychemys'', and ''

Trachemys ''Trachemys'' is a genus of turtles belonging to the family Emydidae. Members of this genus are native to the Americas, ranging from the Midwestern United States south to northern Argentina, but one subspecies, the red-eared slider (''T. scripta ...

''), as well as the recognition of a number of additional subspecies well into the third quarter of the 20th century.Seidel, Michael and Carl H. Ernst. 2012.
Trachemys
'' Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptile. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 891: 1-17 pp.McDowell, S. B. 1964.
Partition of the genus Clemmys and related problems in the taxonomy of the aquatic Testudinidae.
' Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London. 143: 239-279. As recently as 1984 one reviewer of the genus called the chrysemyd complex "a taxonomic morass".Ward, Joseph P. 1984. ''Relationships of Chrysemyd Turtles of North America (Testudines: Emydidae).'' Special Publications, The Museum Texas Tech University. No. 21. 50 pp. Another wrote "''Pseudemys'' has long been recognized as something of a taxonomic quagmire, and has been the subject of a confusing litany of taxonomic arrangements."Spinks, Phillip Q., Robert C. Thomson, Gregory B. Pauly, Catherine E. Newmane, Genevieve Mount, and H. Bradley Shaffer. 2013. ''Misleading phylogenetic inferences based on single-exemplar sampling in the turtle genus Pseudemys.'' Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 68 (2); 269-281. By the last decade of the 20th century, taxonomist were largely in agreement on a

monophyletic In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent co ...

genus and the recognition of nine taxa. However the relationships and status of some of the taxa in the genus, as species or subspecies, has been inconsistent.Rhodin, Anders G.J. Peter Paul van Dijk, John B. Iverson, and H. Bradley Shaffer. 2010.
Turtles of the World, 2010 Update: Annotated Checklist of Taxonomy, Synonymy, Distribution and Conservation Status.
' Conservation Biology of Freshwater Turtles and Tortoises. Chelonian Research Monographs No. 5: 85-164 pp. Some have recognized all nine taxa as full species.Powell, Robert, Roger Conant, and Joseph T. Collins (2016). ''Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition.'' Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiii + 494 pp. ages 211-217 Two clades, or species groups, are recognized within the genus, the red-bellied cooters (''P. alabamensis'', ''P. nelsoni'', ''P. rubriventris'') comprising one group (subgenus ''Ptychemys'') and the remaining six species comprising the other group (subgenus ''Pseudemys'').Seidel, Michael E. 1994. ''Morphometric Analysis and Taxonomy of Cooter and Red-Bellied Turtles in the North American Genus Pseudemys (Emydidae).'' Chelonian Conservation and Biology 1(2): 117-130.

Species

A study published in 2012 examined nuclear and mitochondrial genes from geographically widespread samples of all nine taxa, but identified only three clades pecies with significant integration between some clades, and stated: "We found little or no evidence supporting the division of ''Pseudemys'' into its currently recognized species/subspecies. Rather, our data strongly suggest that the group has been oversplit and contains fewer species than currently recognized." Somewhat confoundedly, the study did not recommend any taxonomic changes, concluding the resolution of ''Pseudemys'' will necessitate further analysis with an integrated review of

morphology Morphology, from the Greek and meaning "study of shape", may refer to: Disciplines *Morphology (archaeology), study of the shapes or forms of artifacts *Morphology (astronomy), study of the shape of astronomical objects such as nebulae, galaxies, ...

, historical

biogeographic Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and through geological time. Organisms and biological communities often vary in a regular fashion along geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, ...

data, and extensive geographic sampling with large amounts of molecular (

DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...

) data. The following fossil species are also known: * †'' Pseudemys caelata'' Hay, 1908 * †'' Pseudemys carri'' Rose & Weaver, 1966 * †'' Pseudemys idahoensis'' Gilmore, 1933 * † ''Pseudemys'' ''williamsi'' Rose & Weaver, 1966

Description

Members of this genus are among the largest of the

Emydidae Emydidae (Latin (freshwater tortoise) + Ancient Greek (, "appearance, resemblance")) is a family of testudines (turtles) that includes close to 50 species in 10 genera. Members of this family are commonly called terrapins, pond turtles, or mar ...

, capable of attaining carapace lengths of over 16.0 in (40.64 cm) and capable of weighing up to 35 lbs (15.876 kg), although most individuals are far smaller. All are aquatic, spending the majority of their time in lakes, rivers, and ponds where they can easily be seen basking on rocks and logs in sunny weather.

Distribution

The genus ''Pseudemys'' is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

. All but one species are endemic to the USA, predominantly occurring in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

and peripheral areas of southeast

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, southern

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

and southeast

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

. The northern red-bellied cooter (''Pseudemys rubriventris''), ranges north into central

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

with some smaller isolated populations in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. The westernmost species, the Rio Grande cooter (''Pseudemys gorzugi''), occurs in the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

and several of its tributaries on the USA –

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

border, in

and the neighboring Mexican states of

Coahuila Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza, is one of the 31 states of Mexico. The largest city and State Capital is the city of Saltillo; the second largest is Torreón and the thi ...

Nuevo Leon Nuevo is the Spanish word for "new". It may refer to: * Nuevology, California, a town in California, United States * Nuevo (band), featuring singer and musician Peter Godwin * Nuevo (Bayamón), a settlement in Puerto Rico * "Nuevo", Spanish-langu ...

, and

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas, is a state in Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 43 municipalities. It is located in nor ...

, following the

Pecos River The Pecos River ( ; ) originates in north-central New Mexico and flows into Texas, emptying into the Rio Grande. Its headwaters are on the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo mountain range in Mora County north of Pecos, New Mexico, at an elev ...

into extreme southeast

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

. The greatest diversity is in northern

and adjacent areas of southern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

and

where six taxa occur.

Ecology and natural history

Diet: As juveniles, ''Pseudemys'' are typically

omnivorous An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize ...

, feeding on variety of plants as well as sponges,

bryozoa Bryozoa (also known as the Polyzoa, Ectoprocta or commonly as moss animals) are a phylum of simple, aquatic animal, aquatic invertebrate animals, nearly all living in sedentary Colony (biology), colonies. Typically about long, they have a spe ...

ns, snails, clams, crayfish, and insects such as caddisfly larvae, dobsonfly larvae, dragonfly nymphs, fly and mosquito larvae, aquatic beetles, caterpillars, crickets, and grasshoppers. Tadpoles and very small fish (e. g. darters, ''

Percina ''Percina'' is a genus of small freshwater ray-finned fish belonging to the subfamily Etheostomatinae, which is part of the family Percidae. The Percidae family also includes the perches, ruffes and pikeperches from North America. Along with si ...

'') are also included in their diets. Both juveniles and adults will consume

carrion Carrion (), also known as a carcass, is the decaying flesh of dead animals. Overview Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eaters (or scavengers) include crows, vultures ...

on occasion. The diet shifts to a greater percentage of vegetation as the turtles mature. Adults ''P. peninsularis'' are reported to be 90%

herbivorous A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat n ...

, and adult ''P. nelsoni'', ''P. rubriventris'', and ''P. suwanniensis'' are almost exclusively herbivorous. '' Pseudemys concinna'' are known to retain a greater degree of animal prey in their diet than most species in the genus, but are still predominantly herbivorous as adults. In addition to a variety of algae and aquatic mosses, plants reported in the diets include fanwort (''

Cabomba ''Cabomba'' is a genus of perennial, rhizomatous, aquatic herbs in the family Cabombaceae native to tropical and subtropical America. It has divided submerged leaves in the shape of a fan (hence the vernacular name fanwort) and is much favoure ...

''), coontails (''

Ceratophyllum ''Ceratophyllum'' is a cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan genus of flowering plants commonly found in ponds, marshes, and quiet streams in tropical and in temperate regions. It is the only extant taxon, extant genus in the family Ceratophyll ...

''), duckweed ('' Lemna minor''), large-flowered waterweed ('' Egeria densa''), waterthyme ('' Hydrilla verticillata''), water milfoil ('' Myriophyllum''), fragrant water-lily ('' Nymphaea odorata''), southern waternymph ('' Najas guadalupensis''), spadderdock ('' Nuphar luteum''), pondweed (''

Potamogeton ''Potamogeton'' is a genus of aquatic, mostly freshwater, plants of the family Potamogetonaceae. Most are known by the common name pondweed, although many unrelated plants may be called pondweed, such as Canadian pondweed (''Elodea canadensis' ...

''), arrowhead (''

Sagittaria ''Sagittaria'' is a genus of about 303. Sagittaria Linnaeus
''Flora of Nort ...

'' sp.), and water-celery ('' Vallisneria americana'') among many others.

Gallery

File:Pseudemys concinna, Marion Co., TX, 2017.jpg, River cooter ('' Pseudemys concinna''), photographed in situ, Marion County. Texas (13 April 2017) File:PB110463CR (cropped).jpg, Rio Grande cooter ('' Pseudemys gorzugi''), a juvenile from Kinney County, Texas (11 Nov. 2018) File:Pseudemys nelsoni 56613872.jpg, Florida Red-bellied Cooter ('' Pseudemys nelsoni''), Monroe County, Florida (21 Dec. 2011) File:Everglades - Shark Valley - Turtle - how many heads? (12259763393).jpg, Peninsula cooter ('' Pseudemys peninsularis''), Miami-Dade Co., Florida (12 Jan. 2014) File:Pseudemys rubriventris, Plymouth Co,, Massachusetts, 2011.jpg, Northern red-bellied cooter ('' Pseudemys rubriventris''), Plymouth Co,, Massachusetts (22 June 2011) File:Suwannee River Cooter - Pseudemys concinna suwanniensis, Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge, Chiefland, Florida - 8723303192.jpg, Suwannee Cooter ('' Pseudemys suwanniensis''), Levy County, Florida (28 Apr. 2013) File:Suwannee River Cooter - Pseudemys concinna suwanniensis, Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge, Chiefland, Florida.jpg, Suwannee Cooter (''Pseudemys suwanniensis''), close up of head, Levy County, Florida (28 Apr. 2013) File:Pseudemys texana, Kerr Co., TX, 2014.jpg, Texas cooter ('' Pseudemys texana''), photographed in situ, Kerr County, Texas (9 May 2014)

References

External links

University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web
{{Authority control Turtle genera Taxa named by John Edward Gray