| Popis: |
This chapter addresses turtles, starting with snapping turtles. In the United States, the common snapping turtle is exotic to Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. A potentially abundant source of food for human consumption, this species has been transported outside its native range. Creation of artificial ponds has increased the rate of its dispersal. The common snapping turtle can inhabit most any kind of freshwater and brackish habitats, but it most prefers still water less than 36.0 inches deep, with lots of underwater structure. The chapter then looks at box and water turtles, including the Southern painted turtle and the Western painted turtle; the False map turtle; the Florida red-bellied cooter and the Northern red-bellied cooter; and the Red-eared slider. It also considers softshells, including the Florida softshell, the Smooth softshell, the Spiny softshell, the Wattle-necked softshell, and the Chinese softshell. |
