Pascagoula Mute Turtle
| Pascagoula Mute Turtle | ||||||||||||
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Pascagoula Mute Turtle, Graptemys gibbonsi |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Graptemys gibbonsi | ||||||||||||
| Lovich & McCoy , 1992 |
The Pascagoula mute turtle ( Graptemys gibbonsi ) is a species from the genus of mute turtles , which belongs to the New World pond turtle family, native to Mississippi and partially Alabama .
Appearance
The Pascagoula mute turtle is similar to the Escambia mute turtle and the ornate mute turtle , but has clear characteristics to differentiate between the two. It is more difficult to differentiate it from Graptemys pearlensis , which occurs in parts of the range of the Pascagoula mute turtle.
The relatively tall carapace is olive, brown or green and has black spurs along the central keel. Each marginal sign has a vertically wide yellow or orange stripe towards the middle. The plastron is yellow and has black markings on the hems. Large greenish polka dots sit behind each eye that connect towards the head. Three jagged patterns expand towards the nose, but do not reach it. The sexual size differences are very pronounced in the Pascagoula mute turtle. Females have wide jaws and very large heads. In addition, at 29.5 cm, the females are twice as large as the males. The males do not, like many Graptemys species, have elongated front claws as a courtship instrument. The English name of the Pascagoula mute turtle is Gibbons' Map Turtle .
distribution and habitat
The Pascagoula mute turtle was originally described from the Pascagoula River . But later animals were also spotted in the Leaf River and the Pearl River in Mississippi and Louisiana . The distribution area extends to the coastal plain of the Gulf of Mexico . The Pascagoula mute turtles prefer deep water with strong currents. They also look for sandy soils that are also covered with fine pebbles. Fallen trees and branches that protrude into the water serve as sun spots.
Way of life
Pascagoula mute turtles very often bask on wood or stones protruding from the water. If any danger approaches, they then immediately drop into the water.
nutrition
Males feed mainly on aquatic insects . The larger females with the stronger jaws often prey on large snails and mussels.
Enemies
Raccoons and herons are among the enemies of the clutch in the wild. Otters and waders are dangerous for young and hatchlings. Occasionally, adult animals fall victim to alligators .
Taxonomy
Graptemys gibbonsi was split off from Graptemys pulchra as a separate species by JE Lovich and CJ McCoy in 1992 . The specific epithet honors the American herpetologist J. Whitfield Gibbons. The Pascagoula mute turtle is particularly similar to the Escambia mute turtle ( Graptemys ernsti ), which was first described in the same work by Lovich and McCoy. However, the two species are spatially separated from each other by the distribution area of the jeweled mute turtle ( Graptemys pulchra ).
In 2010 the species Graptemys pearlensis was separated from Graptemys gibbonsi after genetic and morphological studies .
literature
- Carl H. Ernst, Jeffrey E. Lovich: Turtles of the United States and Canada . Johns Hopkins University Press , Baltimore 2009, pp. 364-399, ISBN 0-8018-9121-3
- Kurt Buhlmann, Tracey Tuberville, J. Whitfield Gibbons: Turtles of the Southeast . University of Georgia Press, Athens 2008, ISBN 0-8203-2902-9
Individual evidence
- ^ JE Lovich and CJ McCoy: Review of the Graptemys pulchra group (Reptilia: Testudines: Emydidae), with descriptions of two new species. Annales of the Carnegie Museum, 61, pp. 293-315, 1992 (first description)
Web links
- Graptemys gibbonsi at the IUCN / SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group
- Graptemys gibbonsi at Turtles of the World
- Graptemys gibbonsi in The Reptile Database
- Graptemys gibbonsi inthe IUCN 2013 Red List of Threatened Species . Posted by: van Dijk, PP, 2010. Accessed February 1, 2014.