Spiny Softshell Turtle
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 Spiny Softshell Turtle, Apalone spinifera
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| Apalone spinifera Le Sueur, 1827 |
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Trionyx ocellatus |
The Spiny Softshell Turtle (Apalone spinifera) is a species of softshelled turtle, one of the largest freshwater turtle species in North America.
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[edit] Geographic range
The Spiny Softshell Turtle has a wide range, and is found throughout much of the United States, as well as north into the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec, and south into the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Nuevo León, Coahuila, Chihuahua, Baja California and Morelos. They get their name from the spiny, cone-like projections on the leading edge of their carapace.
[edit] Taxonomy
The species has been redescribed numerous times, leading to some confusion in its taxonomy. There are seven recognized subspecies which vary primarily by geography, and are not easily distinguishable from one another.
[edit] Subspecies
- Gulf Coast Spiny Softshell Turtle, Apalone spinifera aspera (Agassiz, 1857)
- Black Spiny Softshell Turtle, Apalone spinifera ater (Webb & Legler, 1960)
- Texas Spiny Softshell Turtle, Apalone spinifera emoryi (Agassiz, 1857)
- Guadalupe Spiny Softshell Turtle, Apalone spinifera guadalupensis (Webb, 1962)
- Western Spiny Softshell Turtle, Apalone spinifera hartwegi (Conant & Goin, 1941)
- Pallid Spiny Softshell Turtle, Apalone spinifera pallida (Webb, 1962)
- Eastern Spiny Softshell Turtle, Apalone spinifera spinifera (Le Sueur, 1827)
