Turtles

Chicken Turtle

Deirochelys reticularia

Across the regions where it's common, the Chicken Turtle peaks from October to January.

Shows up in 1 ecoregion and 1 state

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Turtles

Chicken Turtle

Deirochelys reticularia

Look, don't take. Many states regulate collecting reptiles and amphibians. Photograph it, log it on iNaturalist and leave it where you found it.

Description

The chicken turtle (Deirochelys reticularia) is a turtle native to the southeastern United States. The chicken turtle resembles the painted turtle (Chrysemys picta) and some species of cooter (genus Pseudemys) in appearance, but has an unusually long neck that is close to the length of its shell.Wikipedia ↗

Habitat

The chicken turtle is found throughout the southeastern United States; its range extends from the Atlantic coastal plain and states such as North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida westward through the Gulf plain towards the Mississippi River. Chicken turtles are semiaquatic, equally comfortable in wetland habitats and on land.Wikipedia ↗

When it's active

In order to be active, chicken turtles require an internal body temperature of around 25.5 °C (77.9 °F), therefore they are generally more active on warm, cloudy days than on hot, sunny ones. Unusually for an aquatic turtle, the chicken turtle is known to hibernate in winter throughout the northern part of its range.Wikipedia ↗