Diamondback terrapin

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Diamondback Terrapin

Conservation status

Near Threatened

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Subclass:	Anapsida
Order:	Testudines
Suborder:	Cryptodira
Superfamily:	Testudinoidea
Family:	Emydidae
Subfamily:	Deirochelyinae
Genus:	Malaclemys Gray, 1844
Species:	M. terrapin

Binomial name

Malaclemys terrapin
Schoepf, 1793

Synonyms

Emys Concentrica
Testudo concentrata
Testudo ocellata
Testudo terrapin

The Diamondback terrapin (Malaclemys terrapin) is a species of turtle native to the brackish coastal swamps of the eastern and southern United States, from as far north as Cape Cod, Massachusetts and as far south as Corpus Christi, Texas.

1 Description
2 Life cycle
3 Subspecies
4 Status
5 Historic uses
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Description

The species is named for the diamond pattern on top of its shell, but the overall pattern and coloration varies greatly by species. Their shell coloring can vary from browns to greys, and their body color can be grey, brown, yellow, or white. All have a unique pattern of wiggly, black markings or spots on their body and head. The species is sexually dimorphic in that the males grow to approximately 5 inches, while the females grow to an average of around 7.5 inches, though they are capable of growing larger. The largest female on record was just over 9 inches in length. Specimens from regions that are consistently warmer in temperature tend to be larger than those from cooler, more northern areas.^[1]

[edit] Life cycle

Adult diamondback terrapins mate in the early spring, and clutches of 5-12 eggs are laid in sand dunes in the early summer. They hatch in late summer or early fall. Maturity in males is reached in 2-3 years at around 4.5 inches in length; it takes longer for females: 6-7 years at a length of around 6.75 inches.

[edit] Subspecies

Carolina Diamondback Terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin centrata (Latreille, 1802)
Texas Diamondback Terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin littoralis (Hay, 1904)
Ornate Diamondback Terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin macrospilota (Hay, 1904)
Mississippi Diamondback Terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin pileata (Wied-Neuwied, 1865)
Mangrove Diamondback Terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin rhizophorarum (Fowler, 1906)
East Coast Florida Diamondback Terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin tequesta (Schwartz, 1955)
Northern Diamondback Terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin terrapin (Schoepf, 1793)

Juvenile diamondback terrapin.

[edit] Status

The diamondback terrapin is the State Reptile of the U.S. state of Maryland and is the official mascot of the University of Maryland, College Park. The species was once considered a delicacy to eat and was hunted almost to extinction. Due to this it is listed as an endangered species in Rhode Island, is considered a threatened species in Massachusetts, and it is considered a "species of concern" in Georgia, Delaware, Louisiana, North Carolina, and Virginia, but it holds no federal status.

Diamondback terrapin, Malaclemys terrapin

[edit] Historic uses

Terrapin is derived from an Algonquian Indian word, torope, meaning "edible turtle living in fresh or brackish water." Terrapin was so plentiful in the 1700s, that Maryland slaves protested the excessive use of this food source as their main protein. Late in the 1800's demand for turtle soup claimed a harvest of 89,150 pounds from Chesapeake Bay in one year. In 1899, terrapin was offered on the dinner menu of Delmonico's Restaurant in New York as the third most expensive item on the extensive menu. A patron could request either Maryland or Baltimore terrapin at a price of $2.50. Although demand was high, by 1920 the harvest of terrapin, during one year, reached only 823 pounds.[2]