Knowing The Eastern Mud Turtle

The eastern mud turtle, which is about 4 inches in length, requires a specific habitat to do well. For this reason, as the species experiences a loss of much of its habitat, the turtle is on endangered lists in parts of its original range.

Geography

• The eastern mud turtle has a geographic range from Long Island southward to the tip of Florida and as far westward as central portions of Texas. It has a presence in eastern Oklahoma and as far north in the western part of its range as northwest Indiana, where a few remain.

Features

• The turtle looks for a pond, lake or river environment that features a large amount of aquatic vegetation, where the bottom is muddy and soft, and the water is slow-moving.

Considerations

• This kind of turtle survives in both fresh and brackish water, meaning that it can inhabit salt marshes and has populations of islands off the Atlantic Coast.

Migration

• When a period of drought or unusually hot weather dries up its habitat, the eastern mud turtle migrates over land until it finds another suitable body of water in which to live. If it fails to find a new habitat, it burrows into the mud and spends the summer in a semi-hibernating state.

Hibernation

• The species passes the winter in a burrow below the frost line, typically in the mud near a marsh, pond or swamp. It will commence overwintering as early as September and return to activity as late as May in some places.