Herpetofauna: One Life's List

Graptemys pseudogeographica kohnii
Mississippi Map Turtle

Jackson Co., Illinois
July 30, 2005

I've looked at a lot of turtles on the Big Muddy over the years; some have been Map Turtles, and the problem always arises - which Map Turtle?  Graptemys in this part of the world are a bit of a muddle.  The markings on Big Muddy Maps seem to vay from turtle to turtle.

Turtle spotting (and turtle photography) from a canoe are tough, but binoculars pulled in the crescent-shaped white mark behind the eye.  I managed to shoot a couple shaky photos before the canoe  crossed that invisible line and bloop! into Big Muddy went the Map Turtle.  I'll mark this one down as the Mississippi Map, based on the markings around the eye.