River Cooter

About the River Cooter

The river cooter (Pseudemys concinna) is a species of freshwater turtle in the family Emydidae. The species is native to the central and eastern United States, but has been introduced into parts of California, Washington, and British Columbia.

Pseudemys concinna is found from Virginia south to central Georgia, west to eastern Texas, Oklahoma, and north to southern Indiana. There are also isolated populations found in West Virginia, eastern Kentucky, and north-central Tennessee.

Pseudemys concinna is usually found in shallow rivers with moderate to slow currents, as well as lakes, tidal marshes and riverine floodplains with heavy vegetation and abundant basking surfaces. There are two subspecies which are recognized as being valid.

Pseudemys concinna concinna (LeConte, 1830) – eastern river cooter Pseudemys concinna suwanniensis Carr, 1937 – Suwannee cooter – sometimes regarded as a separate species, P. suwanniensis Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Pseudemys.

The coastal plain cooter or Florida cooter (P. floridana) was formerly considered... Wikipedia →