- Sternotherus odoratus
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Sternotherus odoratus Conservation status Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Sauropsida Order: Testudines Family: Kinosternidae Genus: Sternotherus Species: S. odoratus Binomial name Sternotherus odoratus
(Latreille, 1801)Synonyms Testudo odorata Latreille, 1801 in Sonnini & Latreille
Testudo glutinata Daudin, 1801
Emys odorata Schweigger, 1812
? Terrapene boscii Merrem, 1820
Terrapene odorata Merrem, 1820
Cistuda odorata Say, 1825
Sternothaerus odoratus Bell, 1825
Clemmys glutinata Ritgen, 1828
Kinosternon odoratum Bonaparte, 1830
Didicla odorata Rafinesque, 1832
Staurotypus odoratus Duméril & Bibron, 1835
Cistudo odorata LeConte, 1854
Kinosternum guttatum LeConte, 1854
Sternotherus odoratus LeConte, 1854
Aromochelys odorata Gray, 1856
Cinosternum odoratum Agassiz, 1857
Ozotheca odorata Agassiz, 1857
Ozotheca tristycha Agassiz, 1857
Ozhoteca odorata García Cubas, 1884
Ozothea odorata Velasco, 1892
Sternotherus odoratus Conant, 1975
Armochelys odoratum Zug, 1986Sternotherus odoratus is a species of small turtle native to southeastern Canada and much of the Eastern United States. It is also known as the common musk turtle or stinkpot due to its ability to release a foul musky odor to deter predation. They are sometimes bred specifically to be kept as pets.
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Description
Stinkpots are black, grey or brown turtles with highly domed shells. They grow to approximately 8 to 14 cm (about 3 to 5 inches). They have long necks and rather short legs. Males can usually be distinguished from females by their significantly longer tails. The head is vaguely triangular in shape, with a pointed snout and sharp beak, and yellow-green striping from the tip of the nose to the neck. Barbels are present on the chin and the throat. Their plastrons are relatively small, offering little protection for the legs, and have only one transverse, anterior hinge.[1] Algae often grow on their carapaces. Their tiny tongues are covered in bud-like papillae that allow them to respire underwater.[2]
Behavior
Musk turtles are almost entirely aquatic, spending the vast majority of their time in shallow, heavily vegetated waters of slow moving creeks, or in ponds. They typically only venture onto land when the female lays her eggs, or in some cases, to bask. They can climb sloping, partially submerged tree trunks or branches to as much as 2 m above the water surface, and have been known to drop into boats or canoes passing underneath.[3]
Diet
They are carnivorous, consuming a wide variety of aquatic invertebrates, including crayfish, freshwater clams, snails, and various insects. They will also eat fish and carrion. Their common names are derived from the scent glands located just under the rear of their shell, which allows them to release a foul, musky odor to deter predation, which hardly ever occurs[citation needed]. Wild turtles often will not hesitate to bite if harassed, though they are not particularly fast-moving and their reach is limited.
Reproduction
Breeding occurs in the spring, and females lay two to 9 elliptical, hard-shelled eggs in a shallow burrow or under shoreline debris. The eggs hatch in late summer or early fall. Hatchlings are usually less than one inch long. Their lifespan, as with most turtles, is quite long, with specimens in captivity being recorded at 50+ years of age. Male stinkpots usually reproduce in water temperature which is neither very warm nor very cool. Females mostly reproduce either in the temperature of very cool or very warm but, not in between like the males.
Geographic distribution
The common musk turtle ranges in Canada in southern Ontario, southern Quebec, and in the Eastern United States from southern Maine in the north, south through to Florida, and west to central Texas, with a disjunct population located in central Wisconsin.
Taxonomy
The species was first described by the French taxonomist Pierre André Latreille in 1802, from a specimen collected near Charleston, South Carolina. At the time, almost all turtles were classified in the genus Testudo, and he gave it the name Testudo odorata. In 1825, John Edward Gray created the genus Sternotherus to include species of musk turtle and it became Sternotherus odoratus. The species has been redescribed numerous times by many authors, leading to a large amount of confusion in its classification. To confuse it further, the differences between mud turtles and musk turtles are a point of debate, with some researchers considering them the same genus, Kinosternon.
Conservation
Though the common musk turtle holds no federal conservation status in the US and is quite common throughout most of its range, it is listed as a threatened species in the state of Iowa. In Canada, the stinkpot is listed as a species at risk, and is protected by the federal Species at Risk Act (SARA).[4]
In captivity
Due to its small size, the common musk turtle generally makes a better choice for a pet turtle than other commonly available species, such as the red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta elegans). Throughout their range, wild-caught specimens are commonly available, but the species is also frequently captive-bred specifically for the pet trade. (In the United States, USDA regulations ban the sale of turtles under four inches long as pets. This technically excludes all musk turtles.) They readily accept a diet of commercially available turtle pellets and various insects, such as crickets and mealworms, or earthworms. Due to their almost entirely aquatic nature, common musk turtles also do not necessarily require the same ultraviolet (UV) lighting most other turtle species do for proper captive care, though it is usually recommended to give them a more natural light cycle than normal indoor lighting and because some UV lighting will strengthen the shell.
References
- ^ Conant, Roger.1975.A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America.Houghton Mifflin. Boston
- ^ Walker, Matt (2010-05-20). "Turtle 'super tongue' lets reptile survive underwater". BBC News. http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8693000/8693794.stm. Retrieved 2010-05-20.
- ^ Conant, Roger.1975.A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America.Houghton Mifflin.Boston
- ^ http://www.registrelep.gc.ca/species/speciesDetails_e.cfm?sid=706
- The Center for Reptile & Amphibian Conservation: Common Musk Turtle
- eNature.com Nature Guides: Common Musk Turtle
- Sternotherus odoratus in Connecticut
External links
- Tortoise Trust: Common Musk Turtle
- Stinkpot Turtle, Natural Resources Canada
Kinosternidae family of turtles Genus Species of the Kinosterninae subfamilyKinosternon Alamos mud turtle · Arizona mud turtle · Central American mud turtle · Creaser's mud turtle · Dunn's mud turtle · Durango mud turtle · Eastern mud turtle · Herrara's mud turtle · Jalisco mud turtle · Mexican mud turtle · Mexican plateau mud turtle · Oaxaca mud turtle · Scorpion mud turtle · Sonora mud turtle · Striped mud turtle · Tabasco mud turtle · White-lipped mud turtle · Yellow mud turtleSternotherus Genus Species of the Staurotypinae subfamilyClaudius Staurotypus Phylogenetic arrangement of turtles based on turtles of the world 2010 update: annotated checklist of taxonomy, synonymy, distribution and conservation status.Order Testudines (turtles) Suborder SuperfamilySubfamilyCryptodira Chelydra · MacrochelysCaretta · Chelonia · Eretmochelys · Lepidochelys · NatatorDermochelysDermatemydidaeDermatemysStaurotypinaeClaudius · StaurotypusBatagur · Cuora · Cyclemys · Geoclemys · Geoemyda · Hardella · Heosemys · Leucocephalon · Malayemys · Mauremys · Melanochelys · Morenia · Notochelys · Orlitia · Pangshura · Rhinoclemmys · Sacalia · Siebenrockiella · VijayachelysAldabrachelys · Astrochelys · Chelonoidis · Chersina · Cylindraspis · Geochelone · Gopherus · Homopus · Indotestudo · Kinixys · Malacochersus · Manouria · Psammobates · Pyxis · Stigmochelys · TestudoTrionychiaCarettochelyidaeCarettochelysTrionychinaePleurodira ChelidinaeChelodininaeHydromedusinaePelomedusa · PelusiosPhylogenetic arrangement based on turtles of the world 2010 update: annotated checklist. Extinct turtles not included.
See also List of Testudines families
Portal · WikiProjectCategories:- IUCN Red List least concern species
- Sternotherus
- Animals described in 1802
- Reptiles of Ontario
- Fauna of Canada
- Fauna of the Plains-Midwest (United States)
- Fauna of the Eastern United States
- Fauna of Delaware and Maryland
- Reptiles of the United States
- Pet turtles
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