Striped mud turtle

The striped mud turtle (Kinosternon baurii) is a species of turtle in the family Kinosternidae. The species is endemic to the southeastern United States.

Striped mud turtle
Wild striped mud turtle from Florida
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Testudines
Suborder: Cryptodira
Family: Kinosternidae
Genus: Kinosternon
Species:
K. baurii
Binomial name
Kinosternon baurii
(Garman, 1891)[2]
Synonyms[3]
  • Cinosternum baurii
    Garman, 1891
  • Kinosternon baurii
    — Lönnberg, 1894
  • Kinosternon bauri palmarum
    Stejneger, 1925
  • Kinosternon bauri bauri
    — Mertens, L. Müller & Rust, 1934
  • Kinosternon baurii baurii
    — Stejneger & Barbour, 1939
  • Kinosternon baurii palmarum
    — Stejneger & Barbour, 1939

Etymology

The specific name, baurii, is in honor of herpetologist Georg Baur.[4][5]

Geographic range

The striped mud turtle is found in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.[2]

Description

K. baurii has three light-colored stripes along the length of the smooth carapace. It can grow to a straight carapace length of 8–12 cm (3-4¾ inches).

Habitat and behavior

K. baurii is a common species found in freshwater habitats. It wanders about on land more than any other of the mud turtles and can sometimes be observed foraging for food in cow dung.

Diet

The striped mud turtle is omnivorous. It eats insects, snails, fish, carrion, algae, and plants. The striped mud turtle also eats dried up krill.

Captivity

As a pet K. baurii is easy to care for, readily eating commercial turtle foods, feeder fish, and worms.

Reproduction

Adult females of K. baurii nest from September to June. The eggs, which are slightly over 2.5 cm (1 in) long, hatch 13 to 19 weeks later. The hatchlings are about 2.5 cm (1 inch) in straight carapace length and, unlike the adult turtles, have keeled carapaces.

References
  1. van Dijk, P.P. (2011). "Kinosternon baurii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T163429A97379931. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-1.RLTS.T163429A5605837.en.{{cite iucn}}: error: |doi= / |page= mismatch (help)
  2. Rhodin 2010, p. 000.96
  3. Fritz, Uwe; Havaš, Peter (2007). "Checklist of Chelonians of the World" (PDF). Vertebrate Zoology. 57 (2): 251. ISSN 1864-5755. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-12-17. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
  4. "Kinosternon baurii ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
  5. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Kinosternon baurii, p. 19).
Bibliography

Further reading
  • Behler, John L.; King, F. Wayne (1979). The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 743 pp. ISBN 0-394-50824-6. (Kinosternon bauri, pp. 438–439 + Plate 317).
  • Garman S (1891). "On a Tortoise found in Florida and Cuba, Cinosternum Baurii ". Bulletin of the Essex Institute 23: 141-144. (Cinosternum baurii, new species).
  • Powell R, Conant R, Collins JT (2016). Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp. ISBN 978-0-544-12997-9. (Kinosternon baurii, pp. 223–224 + Plate 19).
  • Smith, Hobart M; Brodie, Edmund D. Jr. (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. ISBN 0-307-13666-3 (paperback); ISBN 0-307-47009-1 (hardcover). (Kinosternon bauri, pp. 24–25).
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