Sonoran Mud Turtle
Kinosternon sonoriense
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassTestudines
- FamilyKinosternidae (American Mud and Musk Turtles)
- GenusKinosternon (Mud Turtles)
- SpeciesKinosternon sonoriense (Sonoran Mud Turtle)
About the Sonoran Mud Turtle
The Sonora mud turtle (Kinosternon sonoriense) is a species of turtle in the Kinosternidae family. Its common names include the Desert Mud Turtle and Casquito de Sonora in Spanish. It is found in Mexico and the United States. One subspecies, the Sonoyta mud turtle (Kinosternon sonoriense longifemorale), is currently recognized.
The Sonora mud turtle's range historically extended to the lower Colorado River Basin of Southwestern Arizona, southeastern California, and likely Baja California and Southern Nevada. It currently only exists in the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora and the United States states of Arizona and New Mexico.
Sonora mud turtles live in various bodies of water such as streams, shallow pools, and even large puddles with depths of 20 to 300 cm (7.9 to 118 inches), in arid mountain and desert areas between elevations of 305 to 1,525 m (1,000 to 5,003 ft).
Wild Sonora mud turtles estivate in vegetation, soil, or other organic matter 64% of the time, and in boulder crevices 36% of the time. Studies have shown turtles can remain dormant on land for 11 to 34 days during drought conditions.
he U.S. Fish... Wikipedia →
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Saguaro National Park | 🇺🇸 United States |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Sonoran Mud Turtle in Saguaro National Park?
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Sonoran Mud Turtle sighting in Saguaro National Park, based on 76 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Sonoran Mud Turtle in Saguaro National Park?
August has the highest sighting rate for Sonoran Mud Turtle in Saguaro National Park in our monthly data.