A website dedicated to the natural history, status and enjoyment of the North American map turtles (Genus Graptemys).
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Welcome to Graptemys.com
The objective of this page is to provide information about the natural history, identification, conservation, legal status, and just overall interest in this group of Emydid turtles referred to as map turtles and sawbacks (Genus: Graptemys). This is a work in progress, so the material will be posted slowly as it is finished. Thank you for your interest. Chris Lechowicz
Recognized Species
Northern map turtle or common map turtle (G. geographica) Le Sueur, 1817
False map turtle (G. pseudogeographica)
False map turtle (G. p. pseudogeographica) Gray, 1831
Mississippi map turtle (G. p. kohnii) Baur, 1890
Ringed map turtle (G. oculifera) Baur, 1890.
Alabama map turtle (G. pulchra) Baur 1893.
Texas map turtle (G. versa) Stejneger, 1925
Barbour’s map turtle (G. barbouri) Carr & Marchand, 1942
Ouachita map turtle (G. ouachitensis) Cagle, 1953
Black-knobbed map turtle or sawback (G. nigrinoda) Cagle, 1954
Yellow-blotched map turtle or sawback (G. flavimaculata) Cagle, 1954
Escambia map turtle (G. ernsti) Lovich & McCoy, 1992
Pascagoula River map turtle (G. gibbonsi) Lovich & McCoy, 1992
Pearl River map turtle (G. pearlensis) Ennen et al., 2010
Sabine map turtle (G. sabinensis) Lindeman, 2013
→ = Species description nearly complete.
→ = Species description complete. CLICK to view
About Map Turtles
There are currently fourteen recognized species and two valid subspecies of map turtles. Graptemys (map turtles) are the most diverse Genus of turtles in the United States. They are primarily a riverine species that can exist sympatrically (with other Graptemys species) or allopatrically (as the sole Graptemys species) in a river drainage or drainages. Some species are endemic to a single river system or a few river systems, others are wide-ranging species existing in many river systems. Most sympatric populations of map turtles consist of each species (females only) having different head types (megacephaly-wide, mesocephaly-medium, microcephaly- narrow) to alleviate competition of food resources.